IRRRL
VA streamline refinance funding fee
Today
0.50%
Proposed
1.42%
Charged on the loan amount when a VA borrower refinances an existing VA loan through the streamline program.
Legislative alertH.R. 9237
Support the veterans benefits. Fix how they're paid for.
A major veterans bill passed the House on November 11, 2026. The benefits are overdue and we support them. But Section 104 pays for them by raising VA home loan fees on the veterans and active-duty service members who aren't exempt from them.
We are not opposing this bill. We are asking the Senate to keep the benefits and change the way they are funded.
- House
- Passed Nov 11, 2026
- Senate
- Action pending
- Today's IRRRL fee
- Still 0.50%
The bill, in plain language
One package. Two very different stories.
The Take Care of America's Veterans Act (H.R. 9237) bundles more than 60 veterans-related bills into a single package. Most of what's inside is good policy. Section 104 is the part worth a phone call.
What the bill expands
Benefits we support
- Expands benefits for catastrophically disabled veterans.
- Expands benefits for surviving families.
- Bundles more than 60 veterans-related bills into one package.
How the bill pays for it
Section 104: higher VA loan fees
Section 104 raises two VA home loan fees to offset the expanded benefits. It is the only provision in this bill that reaches into a benefit veterans pay for themselves — which is why we are asking the Senate to replace it.
See the exact fee changesJune 10, 2026
Introduced in the House
Sponsored by Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL). Referred to Veterans' Affairs and Armed Services.
July 16, 2026
Floor proceedings stalled
A motion to recommit failed 210–211 before further action was postponed.
November 11, 2026
Passed the House by voice vote
The package now moves to the Senate, where it can still be amended.
Next
Senate action
Senators can keep the benefits and change the funding mechanism — that is the ask.
Status verified against Congress.gov on November 13, 2026. Until a bill is signed into law, none of the proposed fees are in effect.
What would actually change
Two fees. One group pays for it.
Both fees are a percentage of the loan, charged up front. On paper they look small. On a real loan they are not.
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Assumption
VA loan assumption fee
Today
0.50%
Proposed
1.00%
Charged when a buyer takes over the seller's existing VA loan instead of originating a new one.
Example · $400,000 VA streamline refinance
Fee today
$2,000
Proposed
$5,680
+$3,680
The borrower above owes $3,680 more. An IRRRL funding fee can be financed into the new loan, and VA allows a refund in certain circumstances — for example if the borrower later qualifies for an exemption. Neither erases the increase: financed, it is paid with interest over the life of the loan.
Break-even on a typical streamline
Today's feeabout 1.5 years
Proposed feenearly 5 years
Broker Action Coalition estimate for a typical VA streamline. Break-even is how long it takes for the monthly savings to pay back the cost of refinancing.
Who pays, and who doesn't
Exempt
Veterans receiving VA disability compensation stay exempt from the funding fee under current rules, and Section 104 does not change that.
Not exempt
The increase falls on borrowers who aren't exempt from the funding fee. Exemptions go beyond a disability rating — compensation recipients, qualifying active-duty Purple Heart recipients and certain surviving spouses are among those VA exempts, and there are others.
Anyone assuming a VA loan
A buyer taking over a VA loan would pay the higher assumption fee, which raises the cash needed to close.
Fee percentages, the worked example and the break-even comparison come from our wholesale lending partner's summary and the Broker Action Coalition. They are illustrative estimates, not quotes, and the proposal is not law.
Our position
Support the bill. Fix the offset.
This is not a vote against veterans. It is a request to pay for veterans benefits somewhere other than a veterans housing program.
What we're asking the Senate to do
Keep the benefits. Remove the fee increases from the final legislation.
- 1
We support the benefits.
A long-overdue benefit for catastrophically disabled veterans and surviving families shouldn't be watered down or delayed. We want this package to become law.
- 2
We object to the funding mechanism.
Section 104 nearly triples the IRRRL fee and doubles the assumption fee. It guts the savings on a streamline and lands on every borrower who already pays the fee.
- 3
Find a different offset.
If money must be found, it should come through appropriations or the Department of Defense — not a housing program that veterans pay into themselves.
Take action · about 2 minutes
Email both of your senators.
The Broker Action Coalition has already written the letter. It asks the Senate to keep the benefit expansion and remove the VA loan fee increase — and it reaches both of your senators based on your address.
- 1
Open the pre-drafted letter
It routes to both of your U.S. Senators based on the address you enter. No research, no formatting.
- 2
Add a line if you like
The draft asks the Senate to keep the benefit expansion and strip out the VA loan fee increase. A sentence in your own words carries weight.
- 3
Send
Two emails, two minutes. Senate offices count constituent contacts on bills like this one.
Open the letter tool
Opens the Broker Action Coalition's action tool in a new tab. Ready Rate does not collect or store anything you enter there.
For realtors & loan officers
You are the voice your clients actually listen to.
Most people never contact Congress — not because they don't care, but because nobody told them how. You have the relationships. This page gives you the language, the numbers and a two-minute action you can hand to your database without rewriting a thing.
Share the link by email, text or your next client update — the page is built to stand on its own for someone who has never heard of H.R. 9237.
Share this page, not a rumor
Send the link to your database. It lays out the bill, the numbers and the ask in plain language, so nobody has to take your word for it.
Talk to VA clients now
If a veteran client is weighing a streamline refinance, the current 0.50% fee still applies until any change is enacted. Timing is a real conversation.
Point them to the letter
One tap opens a letter to both senators. Most people never contact Congress simply because they don't know how.
Keep it about the funding
We are not opposing the bill. That distinction keeps the conversation nonpartisan and makes it easier for clients to act.
Sources & disclosures
Information current as of November 13, 2026. Legislative status and bill text were checked directly on Congress.gov and GovInfo. Fee percentages, the worked example and the break-even estimate come from our wholesale lending partner's summary and the Broker Action Coalition.
- Congress.gov — H.R. 9237, Take Care of America's Veterans Act (bill status and all actions)
- GovInfo — H.R. 9237 bill text (Section 104 fee provisions)
- Broker Action Coalition — action tool and break-even estimate
Ready Rate supports the benefit expansions in H.R. 9237 and opposes Section 104's fee increases as the funding mechanism. This page is educational advocacy, not legal, legislative or financial advice.
The proposed fees are not in effect. Nothing here is a quote, offer to lend or promise of savings, and any scenario shown is illustrative. VA loan fees, exemptions and program rules are set by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Congress and can change without notice. Contact a licensed mortgage professional about your own situation.
The action tool is operated by the Broker Action Coalition, a third party. Ready Rate does not control its content or how the letters are delivered.