Thousands of Montana veterans will soon all be fully refunded by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on their home auto loans, after the process commenced this past October.
According to the Veterans Data Central, Montana’s median loan amount is $227,000, relatively smaller than the national $230,000 median loan amount. Of the 4,920 total VA loan applications in the state, 2,925 of those loans were loan originations.
Veterans are required to pay fees to the VA in order to apply for home loans, although disabled veterans are exempt from paying any fees. However, earlier this summer, an inspector general’s report concluded that 53,000 U.S. disabled veterans were overcharged large amounts on their home loans for the past two decades. Some veterans had to cover a few thousand dollars, while others were charged more than $20,000.
In October, the VA released a press release to Florida’s First Coast News stating it had already began working on solutions to the matter.
“VA staff worked diligently throughout the summer reviewing 130,000 cases, which is an average of 16,000 loans reviewed per week,” said VA Secretary Robert Wilkie in the press release. “This effort included loans dating back nearly 20 years. Our administration prioritized fixing the problems and paid veterans what they were owed.”
Some of the loan overcharges were found to be the result of clerical errors, while others were caused by errors in a veteran’s disability rating after he or she closed on a loan.
There are currently 87,936 veterans in Montana, with 21.6 percent of those being disabled, according to information from Housing Assistance Council. Of the Montana veterans, 8.6 percent are living in poverty.
The VA press release outlined several changes it already made within its department in order to consistently keep veterans informed on their fee exemption status. These changes include stronger veteran-focused communication practices, policies that allow veterans to contact the office about their disabilities during the application process and improved oversight regarding veterans eligible for fee waivers and exemptions.
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