Virginia carries the second-largest active-duty population in America, roughly 120,000 to 130,000 service members, and nearly 700,000 veterans call the Commonwealth home. From the world’s largest naval station in Norfolk to Quantico, Fort Lee, and the Pentagon’s shadow, this is the most military state east of California, and we close zero-down VA loans in every corner of it.
$1,249,1252026 VA loan limit in the NoVA high-cost counties
Why Virginia runs on the VA loan
Virginia’s housing markets are built around orders, deployments, and PCS season, and the VA loan was built for exactly that life. Zero down keeps savings intact through a move, no monthly mortgage insurance (PMI) keeps payments lean on housing-allowance budgets, and rates typically beat conventional. Hampton Roads alone hosts about 100,000 active-duty members across 19 installations including Naval Station Norfolk, the largest naval base on earth, while Quantico anchors the north and Fort Lee the center. Sellers across the Commonwealth read VA offers fluently because their neighbors wrote them.
Virginia property taxes and what Veterans keep
Virginia assesses real estate at 100 percent of market value with city rates running roughly $0.86 to $1.27 per $100 across our markets, higher than the Carolinas, and the state balances it with real veteran benefits. As of tax year 2025 Virginia lets military retirees subtract up to $40,000 of retirement income from state tax with no age requirement, and Veterans rated 100 percent permanently and totally disabled pay no property tax at all on their principal residence and up to an acre, an exemption that follows an un-remarried surviving spouse even to a new home. Localities also levy an annual personal property tax on vehicles, worth one honest line in any Virginia budget.
Most Virginia counties carry the standard $832,750 limit for 2026, but Prince William and Stafford counties and the city of Fredericksburg sit inside the Washington high-cost area at $1,249,125, and a full-entitlement Veteran has no cap at all in either zone.
VA Loans Across Virginia
Every market below has its own page with live local data, current median prices, days on market, the county loan limit, and a payment calculator loaded with local tax rates. Start with the one closest to your base or your plans, and reach a VA specialist any time at 800-697-4371.
One-time close, land and build in a single VA loan
Estimate your Virginia VA loan payment
Run your numbers with local taxes and insurance built in, then we will confirm the real figures together before you commit to anything.
Virginia VA Loan Calculator
Estimate your monthly payment on a Virginia VA purchase or refinance.
Who qualifies for a VA loan in Virginia?
Active-duty service members qualify after 90 days of continuous service, most Veterans with 90 days of wartime or 181 days of peacetime active duty, Guard and Reserve members at six years of service or 90 days of activated federal orders, and surviving spouses of members lost in the line of duty. We pull your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) for you at no cost, underwrite across more than 35 wholesale lenders, and hold a 500 minimum credit score on purchases, so one bank’s overlay never decides your answer. Most files close in two to three weeks.
Virginia VA loan questions
Which Virginia bases and cities do you serve?
All of them, since we are licensed statewide and nationally. Hampton Roads holds the big cluster, Naval Station Norfolk, NAS Oceana and Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, the shipyard and Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth, and Joint Base Langley-Eustis across Hampton and Newport News. Fort Lee anchors Petersburg and the Tri-Cities, Quantico drives the Woodbridge corridor, and Richmond carries the largest no-base veteran community in the state. Start with the city page closest to your duty station.
Are VA loan limits different in Northern Virginia?
Yes, and it matters. Prince William and Stafford counties and the city of Fredericksburg fall inside the Washington metro’s high-cost area, so the 2026 conforming VA limit there is $1,249,125 against the $832,750 baseline covering Hampton Roads and Richmond. A Veteran with full entitlement has no limit at all in either zone, the figures only cap reduced-entitlement buyers. We run the entitlement math on the first call so your budget is real.
Does Virginia tax military retirement pay?
Only partially, and less each legislative session. The Military Benefits Subtraction lets retirees of any age subtract up to $40,000 of military retirement income on tax year 2025 and later returns, covering Survivor Benefit Plan payments for surviving spouses as well. Combine that with no property tax for 100 percent permanently and totally disabled Veterans and Virginia’s veteran tax picture is far friendlier than its sticker rates suggest.
How fast can a VA loan close in Virginia’s fast markets?
Our standard runs two to three weeks from contract, which holds even in Richmond’s 12-day market and Hampton Roads’ three-week sprints. The lever is preparation, a fully underwritten pre-approval before you shop, the Certificate of Eligibility (COE) pulled on day one, and appraisers who know the local stock. Virginia listing agents see enough VA offers to know which lenders close on time, and that reputation is the offer’s real currency.
Talk with a PBT Bancorp VA specialist about buying or refinancing anywhere in Virginia. We pull your COE, shop your loan across more than 35 wholesale lenders, and most of our borrowers close in two to three weeks. Call 800-697-4371 or get pre-qualified online.
