CalVet home loan vs. VA loan: how they compare

01How do CalVet and VA home loans differ?

CalVet and VA loans differ first in who lends. CalVet Home Loans is a California state agency that lends its own funds, raised through voter-approved state bonds¹. A VA loan is made by a private bank, mortgage company or credit union, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs guarantees part of it².

02Who is eligible for each program?

Both programs serve veterans and some people still in uniform, and both look at length of service and discharge. CalVet asks for 90 days of active duty and a discharge under honorable conditions, and it accepts National Guard members and reservists ordered to federal active duty. The VA’s minimum depends on when you served^3,9. CalVet’s own rules, from its New Customer page³:

• At least 90 days of active duty, in wartime or peacetime, excluding training.
• A discharge under honorable conditions.
• No CalVet Home Loan currently outstanding. There is no limit on how many times a veteran can use the program.
• No prior California residency. National Guard members and reservists ordered to federal active duty, including Active Guard/Reserve duty, can apply.

CalVet lends from different bond programs, and the bond adds rules. Its rates page says the Qualified Veterans Mortgage Bond program requires wartime service or a federal campaign or expeditionary medal, and an application within 25 years of release from active duty. The Qualified Mortgage Bond program carries income and purchase-price limits and federal recapture tax⁶.

For a VA loan, current service members generally need at least 90 continuous days of service, and veterans who served after August 2, 1990 generally need 24 continuous months, with exceptions⁹. A Certificate of Eligibility (COE) confirms the benefit and shows any entitlement in use².

Both programs finance a home you live in. CalVet’s statute requires the veteran or immediate family to move in within 60 days of purchase and to stay until the loan is repaid or the home is sold, unless CalVet waives occupancy¹¹. A VA borrower certifies an intent to occupy the home, and VA guidance generally expects that within about 60 days of closing; confirm with your lender^4,12.

03How much can you borrow in Orange County?

A VA borrower with full entitlement has no VA loan limit in Orange County. A borrower with entitlement in use works from the county’s one-unit conforming limit, which FHFA set at $1,249,125 for 2026^7,13,14. CalVet’s rates page says its veterans’ bond program has no purchase-price restriction, with loan amounts subject to county limits⁶.

CalVet’s home loan pages do not list the Orange County figure. Ask a CalVet loan originator for the current maximum for your program and property type before you write an offer. FHFA sets new conforming limits every year, so check the year on any VA figure you rely on¹³.

A veteran with only part of a VA guaranty left still has options. CalVet’s FAQ gives the example of a veteran turning a VA-financed home into a rental, and says CalVet may help that veteran get a CalVet or VA loan on a new owner-occupied home³. Our VA loan guide works through the remaining-entitlement arithmetic for Orange County.

04Who holds title, and how does insurance work?

With a VA loan, the veteran buys the home with a loan from a private lender, and the VA’s guaranty reimburses the lender for part of any loss after foreclosure². CalVet’s structure is older. Its statute still says the department “shall then enter into a contract with the veteran for the sale of the property to the veteran” (Military and Veterans Code §987.69)¹⁵.

A 2021 law, SB 661, added a second path. The department may acquire the home, “or may provide financing so that a veteran may acquire” it (§987.60)^11,16. CalVet’s home loan pages do not say which structure a new loan uses. Ask CalVet how title will be vested, and have the escrow officer confirm it from the loan documents.

Insurance is the larger practical difference. Most CalVet loans are covered by CalVet’s Fire and Hazard program and its Disaster Indemnity program^3,8:

• Fire and Hazard covers sudden and accidental losses from fire, wind, hail and other hazards, with guaranteed replacement cost on the primary structure⁸.
• Disaster Indemnity covers structural damage from covered floods and earthquakes. The flood deductible is $500 per occurrence; the earthquake deductible is $500 or 5 percent of the loss, whichever is greater⁸.
• Condominiums and planned developments under an association’s blanket policy, and all manufactured homes, are excluded from Fire and Hazard. Those owners insure through an agent of their choice and give CalVet proof of insurance each year^3,8.
• CalVet does not cover contents or liability, and recommends buying both elsewhere⁸.
• CalVet can adjust premiums, and its coverage ends when the loan is paid in full⁸.

A VA loan comes with no program insurance. The VA says homeowners insurance “is required for all mortgages” and recommends shopping for coverage². Whichever loan you choose, get insurance quotes before your contingency period ends, and ask the lender which coverages it requires.

05What fees apply to each loan?

Both programs can carry the VA funding fee. On a VA purchase loan the fee runs from 1.25 to 3.3 percent of the loan amount, depending on the down payment and prior use, per the VA’s table updated September 22, 2026¹⁷. CalVet’s rate assumptions include “financing the VA funding fee under the CalVet/VA loan program”⁶.

For a first use with less than 5 percent down, the VA fee is 2.15 percent; with 10 percent or more down, it is 1.25 percent¹⁷. The VA waives the fee for veterans receiving compensation for a service-connected disability, those eligible for it who receive retirement or active-duty pay instead, surviving spouses receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, service members with a qualifying pre-discharge rating, and active-duty Purple Heart recipients¹⁷.

CalVet adds its own costs. Its insurance carries premiums, which CalVet can adjust, and its APR example includes a one-year disaster insurance premium^6,8. CalVet’s regulations also allow a loan origination fee of up to 1 percent of the loan amount, paid through escrow by the buyer or seller, to a mortgage broker who assists the applicant (12 CCR §302.1(e))¹⁰. Ask each lender for its written fee estimate and compare them line by line.

06Can a CalVet loan carry a VA guaranty?

A CalVet loan can carry a VA guaranty, and often does. CalVet is a VA-guaranteed lender, and it says it “often uses the federal VA guarantee to offer veterans up to 100% financing with no monthly private mortgage insurance payments”^3,10. Its FAQ says CalVet “can combine your federal loan benefit with benefits offered by the state”³.

• VA steps apply alongside CalVet’s. CalVet orders a VA appraisal during loan processing, and its regulations describe the department as a VA-guaranteed lender whose broker-assisted VA loans are subject to VA requirements^3,10.
• The VA funding fee applies, with the exemptions above^6,17.
• Ask CalVet how a CalVet/VA loan affects your VA entitlement, and check the answer against your Certificate of Eligibility². If the loan does not fit the VA rules, ask which other CalVet program applies.

07What should you ask a lender before choosing?

Put the same questions to CalVet and to at least one private VA lender, in writing, and compare the answers side by side. The VA’s buyer’s guide recommends asking more than one lender for a loan estimate, because rates, fees and requirements differ².

1. 01What is the maximum loan in Orange County for my program and property type?
2. 02Which bond program would fund my CalVet loan, and does it carry income or purchase-price limits?
3. 03How will title be vested at closing?
4. 04Does this property qualify for CalVet’s fire, hazard and disaster coverage, and what are the premiums?
5. 05Which funding fee applies to me, and do I qualify for an exemption?
6. 06How much of my VA entitlement will this loan use?
7. 07How long from an accepted offer to funding, and can you meet the contingency dates in my contract?
8. 08If I receive orders and need to rent the home, how does the occupancy rule apply?