The Ultimate Guide to Wilmington Home Loans

Buying a home in Wilmington

Our offices sit right here in Wilmington at 3804 Peachtree Ave, so this is home turf for us, and we have spent decades helping families along the coast finance their homes and refinance the ones they already own. Wilmington draws a lot of military buyers because of how close it sits to Camp Lejeune and the wider coastal Carolina community, and a good number of the folks we work with are veterans, active-duty service members, National Guard and Reserve members, and surviving spouses who want to put their VA benefit to work close to the water. Whatever brings you to town, we can walk you through your loan options in plain English and help you figure out what actually fits your situation.

Why so many Wilmington buyers use the VA loan

If you have earned your VA benefit, it is one of the strongest home loan options out there, and a lot of buyers do not realize just how much it does for them. With full entitlement you can finance the purchase with $0 down and there is no private mortgage insurance (PMI) added to your payment the way conventional and FHA loans require, which keeps your monthly payment lower for the life of the loan. The rates tend to run competitive because the loan is backed by the government, and there is never a prepayment penalty if you decide to pay it down early or refinance later. For military families moving into the Camp Lejeune area or anywhere along the coast, that combination is hard to beat.

Where PBT Bancorp is different

We are an FDIC member bank and a wholesale broker, which means we close some loans in-house and shop the rest across more than 35 wholesale lenders to find you the best deal, and that flexibility shows up most when it comes to credit. The VA does not set a minimum credit score, but every lender sets its own floor, and most want to see a 640 or higher. At PBT Bancorp our minimum is 500 on VA purchases and cash-out refinances, so we can often help families that a bigger lender already turned away. Of course, the higher your score, the better your pricing will typically be, but a lower score does not automatically shut the door on you.

Our team has decades of experience working with Veterans and has helped over 3,000 families find their home or refinance and save money. We are licensed in all 50 states, and because so much of our work runs through our wholesale relationships we are usually able to close in 2 to 3 weeks from start to finish, where a lot of the larger lenders take 30 days or longer.

Refinancing a home you already own

If you bought years ago and rates have come down since, you are not stuck with the loan you started with. The VA IRRRL (sometimes known as a VA streamline loan) is one of the easiest ways to lower your monthly payment, with no appraisal, no income verification, and no asset verification required. We also have a No Score program on the IRRRL that does not require a credit score at all, the only requirement is that you have been no more than 1x 30 days late in the past 12 months, which means we can often close loans that most other lenders are not able to.

Let us help you get started

Whether you are buying your first home near the coast, moving in for a tour at Camp Lejeune, or refinancing a place you have owned for years, we would be glad to tell you where you stand. Give us a call at 800-697-4371 or fill out our online pre-qualification form and we can usually have an answer for you in about 15 minutes. Thank you for your service, and let us help you put your benefit to work here in Wilmington.

Wilmington buying questions