MBA Mortgage Action Alliance Call to Action Urges Senate Support of Bill to Streamline VA Appraisals

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s grassroots advocacy arm, the Mortgage Action Alliance, issued a Call to Action Thursday, urging its members to contact their senators in support of a bill that would streamline the appraisal process for Department of Veterans’ Affairs mortgage loans.

S.4208, the Improving Access to the VA Home Loan Benefit Act of 2022, would direct the VA to revisit existing program requirements to make appraisals more readily available and less cumbersome for buyers and lenders, effectively making servicemembers’ purchase contracts more competitive. The bill, introduced by Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, is a companion bill to H.R. 7735, the Improving Access to the VA Home Loan Benefit Act of 2022, introduced by Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., which passed the House on Sept. 14.

“H.R. 7735/S.4208 will enhance VA’s home loan program by streamlining the home buying process for Veterans and their families,” said Bill Killmer, MBA Senior Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs. “The measure will ease the homebuying process by enabling our nation’s Veterans to use the same modern purchaser tools that non-veteran buyers already use.”

MBA has strongly advocated for the bills’ passage. In May, MBA Vice Chair Mark Jones testified in favor of H.R.7735 before a House Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee.

The House bill passed overwhelmingly; Killmer noted it remains unclear whether S.4208 can pass the Senate as a standalone bill or as part of other legislation.

The MAA Call to Action urges it members to contact their senators to urge support of S.4208. “We need your support to build momentum to help make Veterans in your state more competitive homebuyers,” Killmer said.

For more information about the Call to Action, click here.

For more information about MAA, click here.