Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program FAQs
If you’re a Veteran or active-duty service member with a VA-guaranteed home loan and you’re facing foreclosure, the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program may help you keep your home. Find out if VASP is an option for you.
We’re calling for a targeted pause on foreclosures, with certain exceptions, through December 31, 2024
We’re working closely with servicers to make sure eligible Veterans can transition to VASP and keep their homes. The targeted pause on foreclosures through December 31, 2024 (called a “targeted foreclosure moratorium”), gives servicers time to implement this new program.
These are the exceptions to the targeted pause on foreclosures:
The property is vacant or abandoned.
The servicer has documented that the borrower doesn’t want to keep the home or avoid foreclosure.
The servicer has evaluated all options for avoiding foreclosure that are available to the borrower and has determined that no option for keeping their home, including VASP, or alternative to foreclosure will work.
Keep reading on this page to learn more about your options for loan repayment relief.
How does the VASP program work?
Through this program, we purchase the modified loan from your loan servicer. A modified loan means that the servicer changed the loan terms to make it easier for you to repay what you owe.
When will the VASP program be available?
Loan servicers can send VASP submissions to us as soon as May 31, 2024, but we know that servicers may need time to comply. For this reason, servicers have until October 1, 2024, to get familiar with the process and the technology. We urge servicers to report to us any technical challenges that cause extended timeframes in implementation. We want to be sure these challenges don’t prevent you from getting help from this program.
What if my servicer isn’t ready to offer VASP yet?
If your servicer isn’t ready to offer VASP, but you need help right away to avoid foreclosure, your servicer may be able to offer you a special forbearance or other options for keeping your home. A special forbearance is a temporary break from mortgage payments. Temporary options like this can help you keep your home while your servicer implements VASP.
At the end of a special forbearance, your servicer must approve the loan for another option to avoid foreclosure, like a loan modification or a repayment plan, or you’ll need to start paying your loan payments. Your servicer won’t automatically add the outstanding loan payments to the end of your loan.
Contact us if your servicer is proceeding with foreclosure without exploring other temporary options. You can call us at 877-827-3702 and select 4 (TTY: 711). We’re here Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.
Is VASP an option for me?
VASP is a last-resort option for keeping your home when your loan servicer has determined that no other option can help you avoid foreclosure. You may hear your servicer refer to VASP as the last option in the “Home Retention Waterfall.” The other options that the servicer will consider first for you are repayment plans, special forbearances, or loan modifications. If none of these will work for your situation, they’ll review the required criteria for VASP to determine if your loan qualifies. Tell your servicer right away if your financial situation changes.
Note: VASP isn’t a program that you apply for yourself. If your servicer determines that VASP is the only option for keeping your home and you want to participate, they will submit your information to VA.
Can I choose which option I want to use to keep my home?
You’ll need to work together with your servicer to determine what your options are and which option is right for your situation. Your servicer will ask you a series of questions. Based on your answers, they’ll tell you what options you have for keeping your home. If you choose not to use any of the available options for keeping your home, your servicer will review with you the alternatives to foreclosure.
What criteria determines if my loan qualifies for VASP?
- Your loan is 3-60 months delinquent (you’re 3-60 months late paying back the loan) when your servicer submits it into the program.
- The owner of the property or an immediate family member is living on the property.
- You aren’t in active bankruptcy (and neither is anyone else listed on the loan) when your servicer submits the loan into this program. We’ll accept a dismissed or discharged bankruptcy (Chapter 13 or Chapter 7).
- You’ve resolved the reason you were in default and can start making monthly mortgage payments again.
- You and anyone else listed on the loan have a stable and reliable source of income.
- Your VA-guaranteed loan is in first lien position. And the property doesn’t have any liens or judgments that would risk our first lien position.
- You’ve made at least 6 monthly payments since the start of the loan (or since any modification to it).
- You’re the legal owner of record on the property at this time.
- You and all others listed on the loan agree to the terms of the VASP modification.
What if my loan doesn’t meet the criteria for VASP?
If your loan doesn’t meet the criteria for VASP or other options for keeping your home, you may want to consider alternatives to foreclosure. You could sell your home through a private sale, or your servicer might agree to a short sale or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure.
For more details, you can call us to talk to a VA loan technician. Call 877-827-3702 and select 4 (TTY: 711). We’re here Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.
How can I learn more about this program?
Contact your loan servicer. If you’re having trouble making payments, they’ll determine if VASP or any other option will help. If you’re not sure who your servicer is, check your most recent mortgage bill. If you can’t find their contact information, call us at 877-827-3702 and select 4. We’re here Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.