Arizona real estate agents who work with VA loans, and how buying with one works

By James Sanson, REALTOR® · Updated October 2026

Who VA approves and who it does not, who pays your agent, what VA checks on the home, and the order the steps run in.

No real estate agent needs VA approval to help you buy with a VA loan, because VA does not approve, certify, or list agents. Any agent licensed in Arizona can represent you. VA's rules land on three other things: you (eligibility and occupancy), the home (VA's minimum property requirements, checked by a VA appraisal), and the contract (the VA escape clause). Choose the agent by how well they handle those three.

What you get back: a written plan, before the call, built around your report date, with two or three areas near your base that fit your criteria, the current comparable sales for each, and, if you asked for one, more than one VA-experienced lender to interview. Then a call from James at a time that works for you. Nothing is sold on that call; the plan is the point.

Build my VA purchase plan

Does a real estate agent need VA approval to work with VA loans?

No. VA's own homebuyer guide tells you to meet several agents, pick one to represent you, and read every agreement and fee before you sign. It sets no approval or certification for agents. Here is what VA does control:

• The appraiser. Your lender requests the appraisal, and an appraiser on VA's fee panel does it. Those appraisers do not work for VA, your lender, or your agent.
• Condo projects. VA keeps a list of approved condo projects. A condo in a project that is not on the list has to be submitted to VA for review first.
• The contract. Every VA purchase contract must include the VA escape clause. If it is missing, VA may not guarantee the loan.

Arizona agents are licensed by the Arizona Department of Real Estate. The ADRE public database (opens in a new tab) shows any agent's license, employing broker, and disciplinary actions.

Do this now: look up the license of each agent you are considering before you sign a buyer agreement.

What should I ask an Arizona agent before buying with a VA loan?

Ask for specifics, in writing if you can, so you can compare answers side by side:

1. How many VA purchase contracts have you written in the last two years, and how many closed?
2. If the VA appraisal comes in below the price, what do you do first?
3. How do you present a VA offer to a seller who is unsure about VA financing?
4. Can you tour homes with me by live video and handle the contract while I am still at my current station?
5. What will you be paid, who pays it, and what does the agreement say if I change my mind?

The answers to questions 2 and 5 are covered below, so you will know what a complete answer sounds like.

Who pays my buyer's agent when I buy with a VA loan in Arizona?

It is set in writing before you tour. Since August 17, 2024, under the National Association of REALTORS® settlement rules, an MLS participant working with a buyer signs a written agreement with that buyer before touring a home. The agreement states what the agent will be paid, and that the fee is not set by law and is negotiable. On the same date, MLS listings stopped carrying offers of pay to buyers' agents.

VA's loan rules bar brokerage charges against the veteran (38 CFR 36.4313). In 2024, VA set a temporary variance in Circular 26-24-14 (opens in a new tab), which applies to purchase contracts signed on or after August 10, 2024. VA's circulars page still listed it as in effect in October 2026. Under it:

• You may pay a reasonable and customary amount to your buyer's agent where that pay can no longer be set through the MLS.
• The fee cannot be added to the loan. You pay it from your own funds, and your lender counts it when checking that you have enough cash to close.
• The seller can still agree to pay it, and VA does not count a seller's payment of your agent's fee as a seller concession.
• VA encourages you to negotiate the amount, whoever pays it.

No fee is set by law or by VA. It is the amount you and your agent agree to in writing. Before you sign the buyer agreement, ask your lender to confirm how the variance applies to your purchase.

What does VA require of the home I buy?

A home does not need a VA label to be bought with a VA loan; there is no separate list of VA homes for sale. VA's purchase loan covers a single-family home of up to four units, a condo in a VA-approved project, a manufactured home or lot, or building a new home, as long as you will live in it.

The VA appraisal is where the home gets checked. The appraiser gives an opinion of value and notes whether the home meets VA's minimum property requirements. You then receive a Notice of Value with the estimated value, comparable sales, and any repairs needed to meet those requirements. It helps you decide whether to go ahead, or to negotiate the price, the repairs, or other terms.

An appraisal is not a home inspection. VA does not require an inspection, but it recommends one for every buyer. Near Luke AFB, also check every address against the base's noise contour before you write an offer; the Luke AFB housing guide explains how.

Do this now: if you are looking at condos, ask your agent to confirm the project's VA status before you tour.

What happens if the VA appraisal comes in below my price?

You have four options, and the escape clause protects your earnest money while you decide:

• Ask for a Reconsideration of Value. Your agent or lender sends recent sales that support a higher value, and VA staff review them with the appraisal.
• Renegotiate. The seller may lower the price to the appraised value or offer other concessions.
• Pay the difference. You can bring cash to closing to cover the gap between the value and the price.
• Walk away. Under the escape clause you get your earnest money back. You do not get back what you paid for the inspection or the appraisal.

How much can the seller pay toward my costs on a VA loan?

VA limits seller concessions to no more than 4 percent of the home's reasonable value. Which seller payments count toward that limit is set in VA's rules for lenders, so have your lender run the numbers before you write the offer. One payment VA has said does not count: a seller's payment of your buyer's agent fee.

Do I have to pay the VA funding fee?

You pay a one-time funding fee on a VA purchase loan unless you are exempt. VA lists who does not pay it, including:

• Buyers who receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability, or who are eligible for it but receive retirement or active-duty pay instead
• Surviving spouses who receive Dependency and Indemnity Compensation
• Service members with a proposed or memorandum rating issued before closing
• Active-duty service members who provide evidence of a Purple Heart

Any party, including the seller, can pay the fee. The current rates are on VA's funding fee and closing costs page (opens in a new tab). This page does not print them; your lender quotes the figure for your loan.

Can I buy a home in Arizona before I report to my new base?

Yes, if you plan to live in it. A VA purchase loan requires you to certify that you intend to occupy the home and to move in within a reasonable time after closing. If you are on active duty and cannot move in yet, federal law counts your spouse's occupancy instead (38 U.S.C. 3704). Ask your lender how they document occupancy on a PCS.

Each base has its own housing office, gates, and school districts. The housing guides cover them: Luke AFB, Davis-Monthan AFB, Fort Huachuca, and MCAS Yuma and Yuma Proving Ground.

Can I use a VA loan again if I still own a home with one?

Possibly. With full entitlement, VA sets no loan limit, as long as you can afford the loan and the appraisal supports the price. If you do not have full entitlement, for example because a VA loan you still owe on uses part of it, VA bases what remains on the county loan limit. Your Certificate of Eligibility shows the entitlement already charged, and your lender reads it with you. VA explains this on its loan limits page (opens in a new tab).

Whether to keep the old home as a rental or sell it is usually the bigger decision. The rent versus sell after a PCS guide walks through the math, and if a buyer might take over your loan, see how VA entitlement works after an assumption.

What order do the steps run in on an Arizona VA purchase?

1. Certificate of Eligibility. Request it from VA (opens in a new tab). It confirms for your lender that you qualify for the benefit.
2. Lender pre-approval. Rates and fees differ by lender, so VA suggests comparing more than one.
3. Buyer agreement. Sign it with the agent you choose before touring. It states the fee and who pays it.
4. Offer and contract. The contract includes the VA escape clause. A report date usually sets the close date, and the rest of the schedule works backward from it.
5. Inspection. Your own inspector, during the inspection period your contract sets.
6. VA appraisal and Notice of Value. Your lender requests it. Any repairs it lists have to be settled before closing.
7. Closing. In Arizona, a title and escrow company handles it. Your lender must give you the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing. If you cannot be there, closing by mail or by power of attorney needs the title company and lender to agree in advance.

Selling a home on the way out? Selling before a PCS covers the timing. If you are thinking about taking over a seller's VA loan instead of getting a new one, see how a VA loan assumption works.

Frequently asked questions

Sources, read on October 13, 2026: VA purchase loan page (updated January 7, 2026); VA funding fee and closing costs page (updated October 5, 2026); VA how-to-apply page (updated September 22, 2026); VA loan limits page (updated August 12, 2025); VA Home Loan Guaranty Buyer's Guide (opens in a new tab) (April 2022) for agent selection, the escape clause, the appraisal and Notice of Value, condo approval, inspections, and the Closing Disclosure timing; VA Circulars 26-24-14 (June 11, 2024, Change 1 August 5, 2024) and 26-24-15 (July 19, 2024), shown as in effect on VA's circulars page (opens in a new tab); 38 CFR 36.4313; 38 U.S.C. 3704; the NAR settlement FAQs (opens in a new tab); and the ADRE public database. VA rules change; confirm each point with your lender before you rely on it. This page does not quote rates, payments, down payments, or loan terms.

Build my VA purchase plan

What you get back: a written plan, before the call, built around your report date, with two or three areas near your base that fit your criteria, the current comparable sales for each, and, if you asked for one, more than one VA-experienced lender to interview. Then a call from James at a time that works for you. Nothing is sold on that call; the plan is the point.