Living in Virginia comes with a lot of advantages, including stunning greenery, friendly towns, and access to some stellar urban areas. With its location in the heart of the Eastern Seaboard, the Commonwealth is also an easy place from which to visit some of the most exciting places in the world. 

With all these advantages, it’s no surprise that many nursing professionals have flocked to Virginia. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, some 79,180 nurses work in the Commonwealth today. Although they are highly valued as community members and frontline workers, nurses in Virginia are having an increasingly difficult time becoming homeowners and moving out of the renting cycle in the state. 

This is due, in large part, to the high prices of homes in the Commonwealth. The median listing price of a single-family home in Virginia is currently around $454,475, according to data from the St. Louis Fed. This makes purchasing a primary residence a bit out of reach for many healthcare professionals.

What can nurses living in Old Dominion do if they want to achieve homeownership? One option to consider is taking out a nurse mortgage. These specialized financial products are designed just for nurses, giving them an easier way to finance a home. We’ve compiled a list of the best mortgages for nurses below to help you choose from some of the top loan options in Virginia.

What are the main advantages of a Virginia nurse mortgage?

A significant advantage of a nurse home loan program in Virginia is it can help with the exceptionally high housing costs in many parts of the Commonwealth. For nurses who live in Northern Virginia, in particular, high housing costs make homeownership seem almost impossible. Nurse mortgage programs significantly reduce the cost of buying a home in Virginia because these programs often offer help with down payments and closing costs, provide special loan terms, and have more relaxed underwriting.

This type of loan also takes a more flexible approach to eligibility and income criteria. Lenders who offer nurse mortgages in Virginia understand the unique income structures in nursing (including varying shift differentials and overtime), that many nurses often work more than one job at a time, and that nurses may have irregular employment, particularly if they are per diem travel nurses. They keep this in mind when setting eligibility requirements. As long as you can provide pay stubs and evidence of your work history, you have a good chance of your mortgage application being accepted.

Another advantage of is the lack of private mortgage insurance (PMI). Many conventional loans require PMI, which leads to higher monthly payments. A lack of PMI, then, makes homeownership more affordable.

Lenders are also more relaxed about credit score requirements. This is particularly the case for FHA loans (which are backed by the Federal Housing Administration). Although FHA loans do require mortgage insurance premiums (MIPs), these are not the same as PMI. In fact, homeowners often refinance out of MIPs once their credit scores have improved.

Finally, some nurse mortgage programs in Virginia work in tandem with student loan forgiveness programs offered by the Commonwealth. As every nurse knows, student debt is often a long-lasting burden, no matter how successful or lucrative a career a nurse has. As well as the ongoing monthly payments, student debt means nurses have a worse debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Therefore, receiving this additional financial relief not only makes buying a home in Virginia easier, it also solidifies a nurse’s financial future. 

How are Virginia nurse mortgages different from other loans?

Whereas conventional mortgages may be more familiar to many of us, nurse mortgages feature some differences that make them particularly advantageous for nursing professionals. 

For one thing, they are tailored specifically to the needs of nurses. This means you will be working with a loan officer who understands the specific demands in your field, including unusual schedules and pay structures. 

Of course, one of the most important ways in which nurse mortgages are different from other loans is the upfront costs and lower monthly payments. Overall, nurses should expect significant savings when buying a home with a nurse mortgage, thanks to the lower interest rates, reduced fees, and down payment assistance programs. Again, this is all because mortgage lenders understand the unique financial situations of many nurses. 

As previously mentioned, nurse mortgages also offer more flexibility than conventional loans in terms of eligibility. Furthermore, they often come with recognition of service that you won’t see from a traditional lender. This recognition of service may translate into additional incentives, including waived fees.

Finally, Virginia borrowers who take out a nurse mortgage may find themselves in contact with a larger community of healthcare professionals via their lending program. Any of the Error: Data not found. registered nurses and other types of nurses in Virginia who take part in nurse mortgage programs can benefit from this extended community’s support and resources during the home-buying process and for years to come. 

All these differences mean that Virginia nurse mortgages are tailored to the needs and circumstances of nurses. Not only do they make qualifying for a mortgage easier, they also provide nurses with specialized benefits and support they would never receive from a traditional financial institution. 

Who can take out a nurse mortgage loan?

All nurses who are currently working in healthcare may qualify for a home loan for nurses. As well as first-time homebuyers, this includes current homeowners who want to make a new home purchase. In addition to home-buying programs for nurses, there are mortgage options to refinance a home loan. You may like to consider this to changed from an unpredictable adjustable-rate mortgage to a fixed-rate mortgage.

Furthermore, in addition to nurse loans available all nurses who meet the minimum work history requirements, there are some specialized loan programs with extra perks.

For instance, you may be eligible for a VA loan for nurses if you served or are currently serving in the military. This is backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. It has the advantage of low credit score requirements, no down payment, no PMI, and low closing costs. Although there is a one-time VA funding fee, most borrowers roll this into their loan amount to avoid an upfront fee.

Lastly, those who want to purchase real estate in rural areas of Virginia can take advantage of USDA loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. These have zero down payment options, although there are income limits to qualify.

Medical professionals who take out nurse mortgages in Virginia: a case study

Let’s take a moment now to discuss an example of a nurse who did take out a nurse mortgage in Virginia. This example should give you a better understanding of the advantages that come with these specialized loan products and provide some clarity on what a nurse mortgage could do for you. 

Sonia has been working at Fairfax County Hospital for a decade now and is one of the 7,360 nurse practitioners working in the Commonwealth. Whereas she has done well in her career, is getting great shifts, and is earning decent money, her income is nowhere near large enough to keep up with the escalating home prices in NoVa. With prices and interest rates the way they are, Sonia wouldn’t even be able to make a down payment — let alone monthly payments. Since most traditional lenders are asking for 20% down on a home, she would need to wipe out her savings to make a down payment happen. 

Luckily, a colleague recommended that Sonia check out a nurse mortgage program that she herself had taken advantage of. Sonia looked into the program and was pleased to discover that she would be getting a lot of help with her closing costs. Plus, the down payment would be as low as 3% of the purchase price. With the help of this program, Sonia was able to afford a new home within easy commuting distance of the hospital without compromising her savings and financial well-being. 

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Joshua Holt is a licensed mortgage loan originator (NMLS #2306824) and founder of Biglaw Investor. His mortgage expertise lies in the areas of professional mortgage loans, particularly for lawyers, doctors and other high-income professionals. Prior to Biglaw Investor, Josh practiced private equity mergers & acquisition law for one of the largest law firms in the country.