September 2026
VA appraisal rules updated, and the 2027 pay raise is still unsettled
VA appraisal requirements updated, with a seven business day average. Plus the unsettled 2027 pay raise and a partial claim that can surface at closing.
Military Housing and VA Loans
The VA updated its appraisal requirements
The VA has updated its Minimum Property Requirements, the standards a home must meet to qualify for a VA loan. In the VA’s words, the updates “are now in effect, reflected in the revised VA Lenders Handbook (Pamphlet 26-7), Chapter 12.”
What the VA changed:
- Removed the radon gas requirement in full.
- Revised the standards for homes built before 1978, and separately for homes built in 1978 or later.
- Streamlined the guidance on detached improvements and on Specially Adapted Housing jurisdiction.
- Updated the guidance on non-vented heaters. The VA is also adjusting appraisal fees in some regions.
The number that matters: the VA says that as of May 31, the average VA appraisal takes approximately seven business days.
Why it matters: some sellers pass on VA offers because they expect stricter appraisal conditions and extra repairs. Seven business days is the VA’s own published average, and the updated requirements are worth understanding before assuming an older VA appraisal rule still applies.
One honest caution. The VA named which topics changed. It did not publish the before and after in this announcement. Before you advise a client on a specific property, ask your lender exactly what changed. Do not assume a repair is no longer required. An appraiser can still identify a condition that creates a health or safety hazard.
Source: VA News, VA updates home loan appraisal requirements to help Veterans compete in today’s housing market, June 25, 2026.
A VA partial claim may have to be repaid when a veteran sells
The VA Partial Claim Program is open. If a veteran falls behind on a VA loan, the VA can pay the missed payments and bring the loan current.
The VA does not forgive that money. In the VA’s own words, “you pay the partial claim back when you pay off your loan or sell your home.”
So it can sit quietly on a loan for years and then appear at closing.
- The veteran must finish a 3 month trial payment plan first. It is not automatic, and someone who simply stops paying does not qualify.
- Servicers have until November 28, 2026 to add it to their systems, so a servicer may not be able to do it yet.
Why it matters: if you are listing for a veteran who has been through a hardship, ask whether a partial claim is on the loan. Better found at the listing appointment than on the settlement statement.
Source: VA, Trouble Making Payments.
Pay, Benefits and the VA
The 2027 pay raise is still unsettled
Two numbers are in play for January 1, 2027.
The 3.6 percent figure comes from the statutory formula. The higher raises remain congressional proposals. The final 2027 outcome is not settled, and it usually lands in December.
Why it matters: a family hearing “7 percent” may stretch on a house this fall. The honest answer is that the raise is not law yet.
Source: Congressional Research Service IN12706, July 14, 2026.
The 2027 housing allowance has not been published
New BAH rates are not out. Last year’s arrived on December 11, 2025 and raised BAH 4.2 percent on average.
Why it matters: anyone budgeting a 2027 PCS is using a number that does not exist yet. Plan on the current rate and revisit in December.
Source: Department of War releases 2026 Basic Allowance for Housing rates, December 11, 2025.
VA claims and community care scheduling
Where disability claims stand. As of August 31, 2026, the VA reported 640,149 claims pending, including 71,279 pending more than 125 days. That is about 11 percent.
Community care scheduling has a new direct pathway. The VA has deployed its External Provider Scheduling system across its facilities, letting VA staff book directly into a participating community provider’s calendar. The VA is signing up more providers through 2026.
Why it matters: a pending rating decision or medical appointment can affect a client’s timing, income planning or willingness to commit to a move. Worth asking rather than assuming.
Sources: Detailed Claims Data, VA Veterans Benefits Administration. VA moves to speed up community care appointment scheduling, VA News.
Some veterans can get TSA PreCheck with the fee waived
Under the VETS Safe Travel Act, signed into law January 4, 2025, the TSA PreCheck enrollment fee can be waived for certain veterans.
It is a narrow group, so read the criteria before you pass this on. It covers veterans the VA has determined have a service-connected disability requiring a VA-issued wheelchair or prosthetic limb, from loss or loss of use of a limb, full or partial paralysis, or permanent blindness. They must also be enrolled in VA health care.
Anyone eligible was sent a letter. It is in their VA account under Benefit letters and documents, named the TSA PreCheck Application Fee Waiver Letter.
Two conditions the VA states plainly. The letter does not guarantee free enrollment, because TSA still runs its own citizenship and background checks. And the VA says the fee is waived “subject to availability of funds.”
Source: VA, How you can get TSA PreCheck for free as a Veteran with a disability, June 18, 2026.
This Month in Military Life
September 18 carries two things at once this year
- The Air Force turns 79. It became its own branch on September 18, 1947.
- National POW/MIA Recognition Day falls on the same day. It is the third Friday every September, and every president since 1979 has proclaimed it.
- Gold Star Mother’s and Family’s Day is Sunday, September 27. The last Sunday in September, set in federal law, honoring the families of service members who did not come home.
If you mark one day this month, make it the 27th. Most people do not know it exists.
My Military HQ
What the community built this month
Shout Outs
Cindy Miller
Five new clients and referrals in under 60 days.
Cindy has the strongest early traction in the pilot. Separately, we are seeing something interesting in how she is being discovered online. She was returned first on a cold AI search, twice, with her name nowhere in the question.
Mark Haygood
Mark says he has received 17 referrals since February 17, all from KW Military people he has met.
That is what the community is for. He met people, they sent him business.
By The Numbers
Read off the platform on September 3
Nothing here is an estimate.
The site started as a login page, a home page and a terms page. Google had one of them.
The Certification Ladder
Four certifications, included with membership
43 agents are Mission Ready. That means orientation and all four certifications, held by a verified member in good standing.
It is a current standing rather than a permanent trophy. It reflects where an operator stands today, not only what they once finished.
Who We Are
Of the 76 verified agents who told us
75 of those 76 either wore the uniform, married into it, or grew up in it. That is not a marketing angle. That is who signed up.
What We Learned Building This
Three resource pages, one reporting window
We compared three resource pages within the same 90 day reporting window. All three are well built. They did not perform the same.
The Fort Campbell page answers a question people naturally ask. “iowa national guard home buying” reads more like a topic than a search question.
Use it this week: before you write a post, a video title or a page, identify the exact question your client is likely to ask.
One caveat we owe you: the winning page is also the newest of the three, so age may explain part of the gap. We are testing that next.
Where We Are, and Where We Are Not
Sixteen states have no verified agent
Verified agents cover 225 cities, with a primary market in 34 states.
Sixteen states have no verified agent at all:
Arkansas · Connecticut · Delaware · Idaho · Mississippi · Montana · Nebraska · Nevada · New Hampshire · New Mexico · North Dakota · Ohio · Rhode Island · Vermont · West Virginia · Wyoming
Six of our agents also have a live operator page: Clarksville and Fort Campbell, Asheville and Hendersonville, Lakewood Ranch and MacDill, West Des Moines, Pinehurst and the Sandhills, Wichita Falls and Sheppard AFB.
If your state is on that list, it is open. Reply and tell me where you are.
Coming Up
Community Spotlight, Thursday September 24
9AM Pacific / 12PM Eastern, hosted by David Macias. Fourth Thursday of every month.
A brief tells you what changed.An operator can tell you what it means for your address.
Every number above carries its source, and anything we could not source did not run.
Published September 2026 · Maintained by My Military HQ
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