Federal mortgage records show VA loans financed only about 3% of Oakland County home purchases in 2025, half the statewide share. With conventional rates above 7%, the program's lower rates, no-down-payment option and assumable loans deserve a second look.
By BIG Real Estate | November 1, 2026
Ahead of Veterans Day, it is worth noticing how rarely Oakland County buyers use one of the most generous mortgage programs in the country. A VA-guaranteed loan can finance 100% of a home's price, carries no monthly mortgage insurance, and in 2026 has consistently been priced below conventional loans. Yet in 2025 it backed only about one Oakland County home purchase in 31.
Some of that gap is simply who lives here and what homes cost. Some of it may be habit: buyers and their agents defaulting to a conventional loan without pricing the alternative. Below is what the federal loan records show, why the rate gap matters more than usual this fall, and the 2026 rules that eligible veterans, service members and surviving spouses (and the sellers negotiating with them) should know.
What the loan records show
Every year, most mortgage lenders must report each application to federal regulators under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). We pulled the 2024 and 2025 records for Oakland County from the FFIEC HMDA Data Browser and kept first-lien loans used to buy a single-unit home the borrower would live in. In 2025 that came to 12,899 purchase loans in Oakland County:
- Conventional: 11,545 loans (89.5%)
- FHA: 928 loans (7.2%)
- VA: 419 loans (3.2%)
- USDA: 7 loans (0.1%)
Statewide, VA loans financed 6.2% of the same kind of purchases (5,550 of 89,950). In Macomb County, home to Selfridge Air National Guard Base, the share was 5.6%; in Wayne County, 4.6%. Oakland's VA purchase count fell from 587 in 2019 to 309 in 2023, then recovered to 391 in 2024 and 419 in 2025.
The Oakland County VA borrowers of 2025 were not marginal buyers. Their median reported income was about $114,000, between the medians for FHA borrowers (about $96,000) and conventional borrowers (about $130,000). Their median loan was about $355,000. The median combined loan-to-value ratio was 100%, and 69% of VA loans were above 100%, which is what happens when the VA funding fee is rolled into a no-down-payment loan.
They also paid less for their money. The median interest rate on 2025 Oakland County VA purchase loans was 6.25%, compared with 6.625% on conventional loans and 6.59% on FHA loans. In 2024 the gap was similar: 6.25% for VA against 6.75% for conventional.
Two caveats. HMDA publishes loan amounts and property values in $10,000 bands, so the dollar medians are approximate. And these are full-year medians across many lenders, borrowers and lock dates. They show a pattern, not the rate any one buyer will be quoted.
Why the rate gap matters more this fall
Freddie Mac's weekly survey put the average 30-year fixed rate at 7.24% on October 29, near its highest level of the year. Optimal Blue's daily lock data, published on FRED, shows the same spread by loan type that the HMDA records show for 2025. On October 29 the average 30-year VA rate was 6.789%, against 7.039% for FHA and 7.147% for conforming conventional loans.
Here is what that looks like on a home at Oakland County's September median sale price of $383,500 (principal and interest only, 30-year fixed, our calculation):
- VA, no down payment, funding fee exempt: $383,500 loan at 6.789% → about $2,497 a month
- VA, no down payment, 2.15% funding fee financed: $391,745 loan at 6.789% → about $2,551 a month
- Conventional, 5% down ($19,175): $364,325 loan at 7.147% → about $2,460 a month, plus private mortgage insurance
With no down payment, the VA buyer's payment lands within about $90 of a conventional buyer who put down $19,175, and the conventional buyer still has to add mortgage insurance on top. The VA buyer keeps the $19,175 for reserves, repairs or closing costs.
The 2026 VA rules that matter most
There is no loan limit with full entitlement
A veteran with full entitlement has no VA loan limit. The amount is governed by what the lender will approve and what the home appraises for. VA's loan-limit guidance says the maximum loan is the lower of the appraised value or the purchase price.
County limits still matter for a veteran with partial entitlement, such as one who still owns a home financed with a VA loan. VA uses the Federal Housing Finance Agency's one-unit conforming limit, which for 2026 is $832,750 in Oakland County, as it is in Macomb and Wayne. Remaining entitlement is 25% of that limit ($208,187.50) minus the entitlement already in use. Most lenders want entitlement plus any down payment to cover 25% of the loan. VA Circular 26-25-10 applies these limits to loans closed in 2026. FHFA normally announces the next year's limits in late November.
The funding fee, and who doesn't pay it
The VA funding fee is a one-time charge on the loan amount and the only closing cost that can be financed into a VA purchase loan. Under the current table, which VA has said applies through June 9, 2034 (Circular 26-23-6, Change 2):
- Less than 5% down: 2.15% on first use, 3.3% after first use
- 5% or more down: 1.5%
- 10% or more down: 1.25%
On a $383,500 loan with nothing down, that is about $8,245 the first time and $12,656 on a later use.
Many veterans owe nothing. VA waives the fee for anyone receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability, at any rating. It also waives it for those eligible for compensation but receiving retirement or active-duty pay instead, surviving spouses receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, service members with a pre-discharge disability rating dated before closing, and active-duty Purple Heart recipients. A veteran whose rating is awarded later, retroactive to before closing, may get a refund. Your Certificate of Eligibility shows your funding fee status. Check it before comparing loan quotes.
Seller concessions are capped at 4%, but closing costs are not
VA lets sellers pay some or all of a buyer's closing costs and does not cap those credits. What it caps is concessions, meaning anything of value added at no cost to the buyer, such as paying the buyer's funding fee, paying off the buyer's debts, or prepaying hazard insurance. Concessions are limited to 4% of the home's reasonable value from the VA appraisal, or up to about $15,340 on a $383,500 home.
That matters in a market where sellers are negotiating. In September, 42% of Oakland County listings on Realtor.com had a price cut, and seller credits have become a common tool. A veteran buyer can ask a motivated seller to cover closing costs and the funding fee, within the VA limits.
Veterans can pay their own agent, for now
VA rules normally bar veterans from paying real estate commissions. After the 2024 national commission settlement changed how buyer-agent pay is handled, VA Circular 26-24-14 created a temporary exception, effective August 10, 2024. Under it, veterans may pay "reasonable and customary" buyer-broker charges where the listing side can't set or pass through that compensation. The charges can't be financed into the loan. The lender counts them when checking that the veteran has enough cash to close. VA also states that a seller who pays the buyer's agent is not making a concession, so that payment does not count against the 4% cap.
The exception was described as temporary, pending a permanent rule. As of November 1, 2026, VA's circulars page lists no rescission, and we found no VA rulemaking on the subject in the Federal Register. Some lender websites describe the policy as already permanent. We could not confirm that from VA documents, so ask your lender how it is applying the rule on your loan.
VA loans are assumable, and that can matter to any buyer
A VA loan can be taken over by a qualified buyer, veteran or not, with the loan holder's approval. With today's rates, the oldest loans are the valuable ones. In 2020 and 2021, lenders made about 4,400 first-lien VA loans on owner-occupied Oakland County homes at rates below 3.5% (our count from HMDA, purchases and refinances combined). Many of those have since been refinanced again or paid off in a sale, and public data doesn't show how many remain.
Here is an illustration from the median 2021 Oakland County VA purchase loan: $295,000 at 2.75%. After five years of payments the balance is roughly $261,000, with principal and interest of about $1,204 a month. Borrowing that $261,000 new at 6.789% would cost about $1,700 a month for 30 years.
The catch is the gap. If that home sells for $383,500, the buyer must cover the roughly $122,500 between the price and the loan balance. That money can come from cash or from a second loan. VA Circular 26-24-17 allows second loans on assumptions if they sit behind the VA loan and give the buyer no cash back. VA limits what an assumer can be charged: a processing fee of no more than $300, a 0.5% funding fee unless the assumer is exempt, and ordinary title, recording and tax items (Circular 26-23-10, Change 1).
Selling veterans have a trade-off to weigh. If the buyer is not a veteran who substitutes their own entitlement, the seller's entitlement can stay tied to the loan, which can limit the seller's next VA purchase. VA now requires the loan holder to have the selling veteran sign an acknowledgement of that risk (Circular 26-24-9).
The Michigan layer
Two state rules sit on top of the federal program.
- Property tax uncapping. A VA buyer's taxable value resets the year after purchase, like any buyer's. Budget for the uncapped tax bill, not the seller's.
- The disabled veterans exemption. Under MCL 211.7b, Michigan veterans rated 100% permanently and totally disabled, rated individually unemployable, or holding a specially adapted housing certificate can be exempt from property taxes on their homestead. For the 2026 tax year the application goes to the local assessor before December 31. That can change what a qualifying veteran can afford, because lenders count property taxes in the monthly payment.
What to do with this
- Get your Certificate of Eligibility early. It shows your entitlement and whether you are exempt from the funding fee.
- Price VA and conventional on the same day. Ask each lender for a Loan Estimate, and compare the funding fee, or the conventional loan's mortgage insurance, alongside the rate.
- Negotiate with the VA rules in mind. Closing-cost credits are not capped. Concessions are capped at 4% of reasonable value, and a seller paying your agent doesn't count against that cap.
- Ask about assumable loans. When a listing interests you, ask whether the seller has a VA loan and what the balance and rate are. Then work out whether you can cover the gap.
- Sellers: if you have a low-rate VA loan, mention that it is assumable when you list. Understand what an assumption by a non-veteran means for your entitlement before you agree to one.
The bottom line
VA loans financed only 3% of Oakland County home purchases in 2025, half the statewide share, even though they consistently cost less than conventional loans. This fall, with average conventional rates above 7%, a quarter-point or more of rate advantage, no mortgage insurance and the option of no down payment add up to real money. The program has costs, mainly the funding fee for veterans who aren't exempt, plus a VA appraisal and its paperwork, and it isn't the right fit for every buyer. But if you are eligible, price it before you choose a loan.
This article is general information, not mortgage, legal or tax advice. VA eligibility, entitlement and fees depend on your service record and Certificate of Eligibility. Loan terms vary by lender and borrower. Confirm details with a VA-approved lender and, for property tax questions, your local assessor.