Johnny and the VA Lenders Johnny was veteran. He wasn’t too bright which meant he never made it high up in the ranks, but he was a loyal and hard-working soldier. Everybody liked him. Everybody except the banks. Johnny wasn’t the greatest at managing his small cache of money. That was because his parents were very wealthy and never thought about teaching Johnny how to use money wisely. They had assumed that Johnny would be wealthy like them and hire an accountant like all well-to-do people. But when Johnny joined the army, his parents were not pleased and cut him off. They wanted him to be a lawyer, not a soldier. Everyone, including Johnny, knew they were in denial about his lack of genius. He could never be a lawyer, but he could be a good soldier. And he was. But his parents refused to care. Yes, it’s true. Johnny’s story is a sad one.
House Hunting But despite all the barriers in Johnny’s life, he pressed cheerfully on. His diligence and positive nature earned him a steady job and nice little apartment. But he had bigger dreams. Johnny wanted to get married and move into a real house. It didn’t have to be the mansion his parents owned, just a two-story, three-bedroom deal that his family could enjoy being together in. One day Johnny met a nice girl named Sally. They dated, fell in love and decided to get married. Johnny and Sally went out looking for a home to buy. But everywhere they went, no one was willing to risk selling to man with such a weak financial history. No one believed that Johnny had learned over the years how to better manage his money (which he had, by the way) and everyone refused him.
Veteran Benefits One night, after an especially upsetting house hunt, Johnny called up his old army buddy Jack. After catching up with each other, Johnny mentioned his housing troubles. Jack was surprised. “Don’t you realize you are a veteran Johnny? That comes with privileges bro!” Now Johnny was surprised. (Remember, Johnny wasn’t the sharpest crayon in the box.) Jack went on to explain that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs could help him out with getting a loan. He suggested that Johnny call up the VA and ask them about it immediately. Johnny called the VA and learned all about VA lenders. VA lenders are generally privately owned lenders that receive a special guarantee from the VA. If a veteran for some reason cannot meet the terms of his/her loan, the VA will cover any losses the lender may face. This guarantee helps borrowers like Johnny get better terms and conditions when they take out a loan.
Johnny was thrilled. Once he had the VA guarantee behind him, he was able to purchase a beautiful house and begin living his dream with Sally. Johnny finally got his dream and the added satisfaction of proving to the world that he had learned to manage his money. Photo Credit: Ayla87 , vivekchugh