Home / Texas cities & bases / Temple & Belton
Working at the VA or one of Temple’s hospitals, retiring after Fort Hood, or looking for land east of I-35? Here’s what a VA loan looks like in Temple and Belton: the towns around the Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Center, building or buying on acreage, and every benefit that stacks if you have a disability rating.
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Short answer: Yes. A VA loan works anywhere in Temple, Belton and rural Bell County with no down payment, as long as it’s the home you live in. There’s no minimum credit score on a standard VA purchase, and a VA construction loan for building on your own land starts at a 620 score. Temple puts you minutes from the region’s main VA medical center.
Temple is home to the Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Center, the main VA medical center for Central Texas, plus a separate Temple VA Clinic on South General Bruce Drive. Belton, the county seat, sits just southwest on I-35 where I-14 heads west toward Fort Hood.
I-35 and Loop 363, home of the VA medical center
Popular areas: West Temple, South Temple, the neighborhoods off South 31st Street and Adams Avenue
The shortest drive to the VA medical center and the Baylor Scott & White campus. Older homes near downtown sit beside newer subdivisions on the west and south sides.
Bell County seat at I-35 and I-14
Popular areas: Central Belton near the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, the subdivisions off FM 439 and FM 93
A quick hop to Temple on I-35 or west to Fort Hood on I-14. The historic downtown and courthouse square anchor the older part of town.
Between Temple and Waco
Popular areas: Troy, the rural area off I-35 north of Temple
A small town with newer homes on bigger lots. Commuters reach both Temple and Waco on I-35.
East and southeast Bell County
Popular areas: Little River-Academy, Holland, Rogers and the farmland between them
Farm country with acreage and lower prices. Many homes use septic, and some rural lots rely on a well.
Temple’s biggest employers are its hospitals: the Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Center and Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Temple, along with the Texas A&M medical school campus that trains alongside them. McLane Company is also headquartered in Temple. For Veterans moving into health care, a lab or a distribution job after service, that’s a short commute.
Nurses, techs and other hospital staff often earn shift differentials and overtime. My team can count that income once it has a steady history, usually two years.
If you’re moving to Temple for a hospital job, a signed offer letter with a start date can often be used to qualify you before your first paycheck.
Working at the VA doesn’t change your VA loan benefit. Your eligibility comes from your own service.
East of I-35, Bell County opens into the Blackland Prairie, with farm roads, small towns and tracts of land for sale. Many Veterans here want a few acres and a metal-frame barndominium or a site-built home.
A VA construction loan can pay for the land and the build in one closing, starting at a 620 credit score. The home must be built by a licensed builder, meet VA property requirements and be your primary residence. The dark clay here moves a lot with rain and drought, so the builder’s foundation plan matters. VA construction loans
School district lines in Bell County don’t follow city limits; parts of Temple are served by Belton ISD. These are the districts behind the four Bell County areas above and the overall A–F grade the Texas Education Agency assigned to each.
| School district | Serves | TEA rating (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Temple ISD | Most of central and east Temple | See TEA |
| Belton ISD | Belton, Morgan’s Point Resort and much of west and south Temple | See TEA |
| Troy ISD | Troy and northern Bell County | See TEA |
| Academy ISD | Little River-Academy | See TEA |
| Holland ISD | Holland | See TEA |
| Rogers ISD | Rogers | See TEA |
District ratings are the Texas Education Agency’s A–F accountability ratings. Attendance zones follow the address, not the city name, so check the district and campus for any home before you make an offer.
Nearest VA care: Olin E. Teague Veterans’ Center (Veterans Memorial Drive, Temple) · Doris Miller VA Medical Center (Memorial Drive, Waco), plus VA clinics nearby.
Veterans Memorial Drive, Temple
South General Bruce Drive, Temple
East Veterans Memorial Boulevard, Killeen
Memorial Drive, Waco
Locations from VA.gov. Services change, so confirm with the VA before you count on a specific clinic.
Texas has no state income tax, so local property taxes carry more of the load. Your bill is the sum of the county, city, school district and any special districts for that exact property. In Bell County, as everywhere in Texas, my team uses the full rate for the exact address. A newly purchased home often runs higher, because its value isn’t yet held down by the 10% yearly homestead cap, and two homes a mile apart can differ a lot.
| VA disability rating | Off your home’s taxable value |
|---|---|
| 10% to 29% | $5,000 |
| 30% to 49% | $7,500 |
| 50% to 69% | $10,000 |
| 70% to 99% | $12,000 |
| 100% or individual unemployability | Full homestead exemption |
You apply with the appraisal district once you own and live in the home. How the exemptions work
Few Texas towns put Veterans closer to a full VA medical center. Temple and Belton add Fort Hood’s retiree services down I-14 and no state income tax on retirement pay.
Disabled Veterans can combine federal and Texas benefits that most buyers never hear about. Together they can lower your cash to close, your rate and your yearly taxes.
Waiting on a claim? Tell my team. Your expected rating can change your funding fee and your taxes, so we plan around it.
You can earn VA loan eligibility through six years of Guard or Reserve service, or through qualifying active-duty time such as a federal activation. Your Certificate of Eligibility confirms it, and my team can pull it for you. Reservists and VA loans in Texas
If your spouse died in service or from a service-connected disability, you may be eligible for a VA loan with the same $0 down benefit. Surviving spouses who receive Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) don’t pay the funding fee, and a Texas disabled Veteran property tax exemption can continue for a surviving spouse who hasn’t remarried. We handle these files with extra care and can walk you through the paperwork.
You don’t have to sell it to buy in Temple & Belton. Your remaining entitlement can often buy your next home with $0 down while the first one stays a rental. Second VA loan calculator
A VA streamline refinance (IRRRL) can lower the rate on your current VA loan with less paperwork. A VA cash-out refinance lets you use your equity for repairs or debts.
Some Temple & Belton sellers have older VA loans with low rates you may be able to take over. The seller’s loan servicer handles the assumption itself. My team can finance the second loan that covers the gap between the loan balance and the price. VA assumable loans
Moving again later? You can keep your Temple & Belton home as a rental and keep its VA loan and rate in place.
Some land east of I-35 is reached by private or easement roads. A VA loan needs year-round legal access to the property, so the title company should confirm it early.
My team does VA loans on manufactured homes on a permanent foundation on land you own. Homes on leased lots, RVs and park models don’t qualify.
Temple’s older neighborhoods have homes built before 1978. If the VA appraiser finds chipping or peeling paint on one, it has to be fixed before closing. VA property requirements
Temple grew as a railroad town, and busy freight lines still run through it. Visit a home near the tracks at different times of day.
Eastern Bell County and neighboring Milam and Falls counties have farmland and acreage for Veterans who want to build on their own lot. A VA one-time-close construction loan covers the land and the build in one loan: $0 down up to $1 million, with a 620 minimum credit score. In Texas, a Texas Vet loan can also pay off a separate construction loan once the home is finished. It’s treated as a purchase of a never-occupied home, and my team can handle that too.
The Texas Vet loan from the Texas Veterans Land Board is available to eligible Texas Veterans and can be paired with a VA loan. Its rate is set weekly, and Veterans rated 30% or more disabled get a lower rate. My team prices both and shows them side by side so you can pick on total cost, not a headline rate. Texas Vet vs. VA loan
Nothing, if you have full VA entitlement. There is no VA loan limit with full entitlement and no monthly mortgage insurance. The VA funding fee can be rolled into the loan, and Veterans who receive VA disability compensation are exempt from it.
Yes. You can be pre-approved, shop remotely and close before you arrive, as long as you intend to move in and make the home your primary residence, usually within about 60 days. Retirement pay, VA disability pay and Social Security all count as income.
There is no minimum credit score on a standard VA purchase or refinance with my team. We look first at your residual income, the money left each month after your housing payment and bills. VA construction loans start at a 620 score.
Texas Veterans rated 100% disabled, or paid at the 100% rate for individual unemployability, can get a total exemption on their homestead. Veterans rated 10% to 99% get a partial exemption off the home’s taxable value: $5,000 at 10% to 29%, $7,500 at 30% to 49%, $10,000 at 50% to 69% and $12,000 at 70% to 99%.
Often, yes. If you keep your current VA home as a rental, your remaining entitlement can usually buy your Temple & Belton home with $0 down up to a certain price. Above that, you put 25% down on the difference. My team checks your exact numbers from your Certificate of Eligibility.
Yes, if you are an eligible surviving spouse, for example of a service member who died in service or from a service-connected disability. Surviving spouses who receive DIC are exempt from the VA funding fee.
Often both. The Texas Vet loan from the Texas Veterans Land Board can be paired with a VA loan, and its rate is set weekly. My team compares your options side by side so you can see which costs less over the time you plan to own.
Yes, if it’s built as a permanent home by a licensed builder, meets VA property requirements and the appraisal supports the value. A VA construction loan covers the land and the build in one closing, starting at a 620 credit score. My team reviews the plans and the builder before you commit.
VA construction loan
Shirley and her team were an absolute pleasure to work with. They helped my wife and I obtain a VA Construction Loan which gave us the ability to build our dream home.
Agent referral · VA purchase in Houston
It was great working with Shirley Mueller and team on my buyer’s home purchase in Houston, TX. The VA home loan process isn’t always easy so, it was great to work with someone who specializes in VA loans. Shirley made the process easy. I highly recommend her. Jamie Terry- Priority One Real Estate
Agent referral · VA purchase
Shirley was excellent to work with on our client’s VA home loan. VA loans can be tricky and it is so important to work with a loan officer that knows them well. Shirley did an excellent job!
Switched from another lender
We had a nightmare of an experience with a previous lender but Shirley and Karolina went above and beyond to not only get us into our home, but provide the best customer service possible! They fought hard for us and thanks to them, we are finally living in our dream home. I highly recommend valoanstexas!
VA purchase
Working with the VALoansTx team to purchase our home in Texas was an amazing experience. Shirley, Angie, Ashley, and their team were in constant communication with us, making sure that we knew what to expect with every step of the complicated process. In today’s crazy housing market, it was comforting to know that we had an entire team that was only a phone call away. They were quick to answer calls, emails and always very friendly and personable. We could not have achieved this dream without VALoansTx on our team. We will highly recommend to everyone we know buying a home with a VA loan.
VA purchase
Ms. Shirley and her team are the BEST. Clear communication, specialized VA knowledge, responsiveness, and reduced stress. Thank you all for your help .
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