Veteran Housing Counseling Program

Summary#

This bill would create a VA program to help veteran borrowers and other eligible borrowers use home loan benefits the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) runs. It requires the VA to offer free, voluntary borrower support services and to certify counselors and designate nonprofit counseling organizations to deliver those services. The goal is to help veterans navigate loan steps, avoid foreclosure, and understand costs.

Key changes:

• New program: VA must establish borrower support services for VA housing loans (education, counseling, guidance, coordination, and loss-mitigation help).
• Free and voluntary: Services must be offered at no cost and only to people who choose them.
• Who delivers services: VA may designate nonprofit entities (must be HUD-approved housing counseling agencies or veteran-serving nonprofits) and may contract with them.
• Counselor certification: VA, with HUD, must certify counselors and require recertification at least every three years.
• Conflict rules: Designated entities and staff cannot take payments or referral fees from lenders, servicers, brokers, or similar businesses and must disclose conflicts.
• Reporting and oversight: VA may suspend or revoke designations and must report on program outcomes starting two years after enactment and annually for four years.

What it means for you#

• Veterans and other eligible borrowers

  • You could get free help to understand VA home loan benefits, apply for a certificate of eligibility, and complete loan origination or refinancing.
  • You could get help with appraisals, property standards, loan papers, loan servicing issues, and options to avoid foreclosure.
  • Use of the help is optional — you do not have to take it.

• Nonprofit housing counselors

  • To be designated, your organization must be HUD-approved or be a nonprofit focused on veterans and show expertise and the ability to operate across multiple states.
  • Individual counselors must be certified by VA (in consultation with HUD) and recertified at least every three years.

• Mortgage lenders, servicers, and real estate professionals

  • Designated counselors and entities must act as neutral intermediaries and may not accept referral fees or compensation from these commercial parties.
  • Entities may keep separate business lines for mortgage or real estate activities if they implement firewalls and follow the law.

• Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and HUD

  • VA must run or oversee the program, certify counselors, designate entities, set standards, and report results.
  • VA must consult with HUD and make use of HUD’s housing counseling systems where practical.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Possible cost areas the bill implies:

• This could mean VA will need funding for staff, contracts with nonprofit counselors, certification systems, training, and IT or reporting systems.
• The VA may incur costs to monitor compliance, investigate conflicts of interest, and suspend or revoke designations as needed.
• The program may require recurring costs to produce the required reports on outcomes and cost-effectiveness.
• This could reduce certain downstream costs (for example, fewer foreclosures), but the bill does not provide estimates of savings or net budget impact.

Proponents' View#

• The bill appears intended to make it easier for veterans to use VA home loan benefits by giving clear, free help at key steps.
• Supporters may argue that better guidance could increase use of eligible benefits and improve borrower outcomes like fewer foreclosures.
• The program could be seen as improving fairness and transparency by requiring neutral, certified counselors and banning referral fees.
• Coordinating with HUD counseling systems could make use of existing expertise and training.

Opponents' View#

• One concern is that the bill does not say how the program will be funded or how much it will cost the VA.
• The bill may create administrative burden for VA (staffing, certification, oversight) without specific staffing or budget details.
• It is unclear whether the new program will duplicate existing HUD counseling services or how the two programs will be coordinated in practice.
• One concern is that allowing entities to keep affiliated mortgage or real estate businesses if they use firewalls may leave some risk of conflicts of interest.
• The requirement that designated entities demonstrate multi-state or national capacity may limit smaller local organizations from participating, which could affect access in some areas.