A VA loan is a normal mortgage. So, what ever caused the home owner to be in arrears is the greater issue. Seemingly, 90k vets in mortgage trouble is on par with the grab bag of troubles vets have.
The VA home loan program simply allows a vet to buy with no money down, but usually with a point or more higher interest. Make no mistake, these loans net their mortgage holders superior returns since the VA guarantees that the lender gets their money and does nothing to help the vet retain a home. Rents are no better.
Significant contributor and exacerbator is the sheer cost of a home, even a very modest one. Early 2025, the median home sales price is $416,900 and the average home sales price is $503,800. Wages on the other hand, "In their first year after service, Army veterans who were operational intelligence specialists typically had average earnings of $55,000 while former infantry veterans average earnings were $33,000. Veterans of the Navy, Marines and Air Force experienced similar gaps in initial median earnings in their first year after service."
With a $400K house mortgage payment between USD $2800 and $3400. No wonder! Older vets who were able to bank on the lower interest from the last 8 years or so have correspondingly lower payments, but the pandemic coupled with economic hardships common in the Millennials and Gen Zers highlights that its not just the vets but the rest of our younger folks suffering in spite of the extra baggage hauled by most vets.
My cousin Brenda, a late Cold War era vet (electronics and radar tech), never had a good enough paying job to buy a house in the first place even 20 years after leaving the service. Throw in the turmoil of survival through the homophobic 80's, 90's and finally transitioning MTF in the late 2000s, what do we expect?
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