VA Entitlement Calculator

Buying again with a VA loan you still have? Pick your county, enter the entitlement charged on your COE, and see exactly how much benefit you have left.

Running on 2026 county loan limits for all 50 states, Washington DC, and the U.S. territories.

Step 1 · Where Are You Buying?

State iChoose the state or territory where the next home is. The list covers all 50 states, Washington DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

County iChoose the county where the home sits. Not sure which county a city is in? Search the city name plus the word county. Louisiana uses parishes and Alaska uses boroughs, and they work the same way.

2026 County Loan Limit

Max Entitlement Here (25%)

VA county loan limits are the FHFA conforming loan limit values for a one-unit home. They reset every January.

Step 2 · Entitlement You Have Used

Your Certificate of Eligibility, the COE, lists how much entitlement your current VA loans are using. That charged amount is the one number this calculator needs.

Entitlement Charged iUse the exact number from your COE rather than estimating it from a loan amount. Refinances, especially cash out refinances, change what is charged, so the COE is the only number that is always right.

No COE handy? Any lender can pull it in minutes, or sign in at VA.gov to view it. If more than one VA loan is open, add the charged amounts together. Enter 0 if nothing is charged, that means you have full entitlement.

Step 3 · Your Buying Power

Max Purchase With $0 Down iLenders want 25% of the price covered by the VA guaranty, your cash, or both. Every $1 of remaining entitlement covers $4 of price, so remaining entitlement multiplied by 4 is your ceiling with nothing down.

Your remaining entitlement multiplied by 4. Above this number the loan can still work, you just add a down payment.

FULL ENTITLEMENT

Check a Specific Price iEnter a price you are considering. The check uses your remaining entitlement and the 25% coverage lenders look for, and tells you the down payment, if any.

Remaining Entitlement

Entitlement you can still use for the next VA loan, without selling the home you have. It is the guaranty amount powering your max purchase, not a price you can spend.

The Math

County loan limit$0

Max entitlement (25% of limit)$0

Entitlement charged− $0

Remaining entitlement$0

Max $0 down (remaining × 4)$0

With nothing charged on your COE you have full entitlement, so this county math never kicks in. The VA backs 25% of any loan amount your lender approves.

Understand Your Entitlement

What is entitlement, really?

Entitlement is the slice of your loan the VA promises to repay the lender if the loan goes bad. That promise usually covers 25% of the loan amount, and it is the reason lenders can say yes to $0 down. Your Certificate of Eligibility tracks how much of that promise is tied up in loans you already have.

Full entitlement has no loan limit

Since January 2020, a veteran with full entitlement has no VA loan limit at all. County limits only matter when part of your entitlement is tied up in a VA loan you still have, or was lost in a foreclosure or short sale. That second purchase situation is exactly what this calculator handles.

The multiply by 4 shortcut

Lenders want 25% of the price covered by the VA guaranty, your cash, or both. Every $1 of remaining entitlement covers $4 of purchase price, so remaining entitlement times 4 is your biggest $0 down purchase. Going over that number is fine. You just bring 25 cents of down payment for every $1 above it.

Getting entitlement back

Sell the home and pay off the VA loan, and that entitlement comes back for the next purchase. Already paid the loan off but kept the home? A one-time restoration can free it up, and refinancing out of the VA loan works the same way. A lender requests the restoration when they update your COE, so ask before you assume anything is off the table.

VA Loan Resource Center

You know your entitlement. Now put it to work.

My complete VA Home Loan guide walks through entitlement, eligibility, funding fees, and closing, so you know exactly what to expect on the next purchase. And if you are ready for real numbers, book a call and we will pull your actual COE together.

Download the Full VA Guide Book a Free Consultation

This calculator is an educational estimate, not a loan approval, a preapproval, or financial advice. Your official entitlement comes from your Certificate of Eligibility, which a lender verifies with the VA. Lenders may apply their own requirements on top of VA rules, and second use of the benefit changes your VA funding fee. Confirm your numbers with a licensed loan officer before making decisions.

County loan limits: FHFA conforming loan limit values for 2026, one-unit, effective January 1, 2026. VA county loan limits follow the same table.