Veterans United Home Loans Review 2025
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Our Take
5.0
Veterans United is a top dog in VA lending, originating more VA mortgages than any other lender. Impressive customer service includes free credit counseling and a 24/7 call center. However, average fees are on the higher side. It’s a solid pick for veterans and military borrowers looking for a VA loan with ample support along the way.
Pros
- Offers a range of VA mortgages, including refinance, energy-efficient and jumbo.
- 24/7 customer service line supports servicemembers stationed internationally.
- Average time to close is 34 days, faster than the national average.
Cons
- Average origination fee is on the higher side, according to the latest federal data.
- Website doesn’t have online chat.
- No renovation loans.
Lender | Min. credit score | Min. down payment | |
|---|---|---|---|
 Visit Lenderat NBKC at NBKC | 620 | 3% | Visit Lenderat NBKC at NBKC |
 Visit Lenderat New American Funding at New American Funding | 580 | N/A | Visit Lenderat New American Funding at New American Funding |
 Visit Lenderat Rocket Mortgage, LLC at Rocket Mortgage, LLC | 580 | 3.5% | Visit Lenderat Rocket Mortgage, LLC at Rocket Mortgage, LLC |
 4.0 Visit Lenderat GO Mortgage at GO Mortgage | 620 | 3% | Visit Lenderat GO Mortgage at GO Mortgage |
Visit Lenderat Veterans United at Veterans United | 620 | 0% | Visit Lenderat Veterans United at Veterans United |
Full Review
At a glance: Veterans United mortgage options
Veterans United Home Loans is a nonbank lender based in Columbia, Missouri. Loans are available nationwide.
As its name suggests, Veterans United largely focuses on VA loans, which are mortgages backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. But it also offers a variety of conventional and government-backed mortgages, too.
🏠 Common mortgages • Fixed- or adjustable-rate • Conventional • FHA • VA • USDA • Jumbo • Rate-and-term refinance
🔑 Specialty loans • IRRRL • Energy-efficient mortgages • Second homes • Self-employed borrowers • Construction-to-permanent loans • Manufactured homes
💵 Home equity • HELOC • Home equity loan • Cash-out refinance
Veterans United offers customers home equity loans and lines of credit through a partner lender. Interested customers can contact VU customer service, who will do an initial screening and determine which product is the best fit. The borrower is then connected with the partner, U.S. Bank, for a HELOC or a home equity loan.
» MORE: How to choose a mortgage lender
Veterans United special offers and discounts
Veterans United provides a variety of conveniences and services tailored to military borrowers, including:
Veterans United Realty, which matches borrowers with agents who specialize in working with veterans and servicemembers
Veterans United Insurance, a brokerage service that reviews customized quotes from partner insurance companies
Free credit counseling
What does Veterans United specialize in?
No surprise here: More than nine out of 10 mortgages originated by Veterans United last year were VA loans, according to federal data.
How we score Veterans United
Each year, NerdWallet writers and editors dig into the latest data and independent research on mortgage lending. Then, we rate lenders based on categories that matter most to mortgage borrowers.
Veterans United has a NerdWallet home loans rating of five stars overall. Here’s a breakdown of this year’s score.
Category | Star rating |
|---|---|
Average mortgage rates and fees | |
Mortgage rate transparency | |
Variety of loan types | |
Customer experience | |
Overall star rating |
Ah, so you’re the “read the fine print” type? We got you. Here’s how our scoring rubric works.
Average mortgage rates and fees (30%)
We review federal data (as reported by the lenders) and analyze mortgage lenders’ average fees and interest rates across all loan types. Lenders with the lowest average costs get the highest star ratings. Keep in mind: Loans that are easier to qualify for, like FHA loans, usually have higher rates and fees because lenders see them as a higher risk. Pro tip: Paying some fees upfront can sometimes lower your interest rate.
Mortgage rate transparency (25%)
We look at how easy it is to compare mortgage rates online. Lenders get higher transparency ratings if they show sample rates on their website. (Not all lenders do!) The best ratings go to lenders that offer interactive tools that let you customize a rate quote on your own.
Variety of loan types (25%)
There’s no one-size-fits-all mortgage. Lenders earn top ratings in this category when they offer a large variety of mortgage types. The more variety, the higher their score. A lender earns points for purchase and refinance; fixed and adjustable rates; FHA, VA or USDA loans; renovation or construction loans; and home equity loans or HELOCs.
Customer experience (20%)
How easy is it to work with this lender? Top-rated lenders offer helpful features like online applications, multiple ways to get support, a user-friendly mobile app and clear updates about the loan closing timeline.
Veterans United’s average mortgage rates and fees score is based on data from its parent company, Mortgage Research Center.
Veterans United bonus points
Veterans United earned bonus points for offering closing cost assistance for first-time home buyers and offering conventional loans for manufactured homes.
Veterans United Home Loans reputation and customer experience
NerdWallet’s star ratings look at objective factors like rates, fees and loan options. To give you a sense of what the borrower experience is really like, we pulled the latest customer satisfaction scores from J.D. Power and Zillow, and we contacted the lender’s customer support.
2024 J.D. Power U.S. Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study
793
out of 1,000
Above-average satisfaction score: average = 727.
Mortgage origination covers the application through closing.
Zillow Mortgage Lender Customer Rating
4.77
out of 5
Average rating as of the date of publication.
Rating reflects more than 5,800 customer reviews.
Veterans United Home Loans customer service options
Veterans United has 24 branch locations, with many near military bases or in close proximity to other military hubs. Here’s how you can get in touch:
Ways to reach Veterans United
Physical branches . . . . . . ✅ Phone support . . . . . . . . . ✅ Mobile app . . . . . . . . . . . . ✅ Online chat (bot) . . . . . . . 🚫 Online chat (human) . . . . 🚫
🤓 Our Nerds say... impressive commitment to customer service
Abby Badach Doyle, lead writer, mortgages
Veterans United has 24/7 phone support — handy if you’re overseas — or you can also email customer service. There’s no online chat, which is surprising for a service-oriented lender. But that’s a small trade-off considering its other uncommon perks, like offering credit counseling free of charge to any veteran.
» MORE: How to apply for a mortgage
Alternatives to a Veterans United mortgage
Our biggest tip: Get offers from at least three different mortgage lenders. Comparison shopping can save you thousands of dollars. You can get rate quotes yourself, or work with a mortgage broker to shop around on your behalf.
If you want to stick with a military-focused lender that really knows VA loans, Navy Federal Credit Union could be another good fit.
Pennymac also did about half of its business in VA loans last year, and its average interest rates are among the lowest of all lenders we reviewed.
» MORE: Best VA mortgage lenders
More from NerdWallet
NerdWallet’s overall ratings for mortgage lenders are evaluated based on four major categories: average mortgage rates and origination fees, rate transparency to consumers, variety of loan types (purchase, refinance, fixed and adjustable, for example) and customer experience. Among the factors we consider in these categories are: options to apply for home loans online, typical time to close, mobile app experience, level of detail about mortgage rates on lender websites, and NerdWallet’s own analysis of the rates and fees lenders reported in the latest available Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. These and other items inform detailed rubrics, which generate ratings from 1 star (poor) to 5 stars (excellent). Read more about how we rate mortgage lenders here.
