Qualified Veterans can buy 1-3 professionally managed rental units along with a new home with no money down. And up to 75% of the rental revenue can count as qualifying income for the loan.

So what's the catch? The rental units must be attached to your new home. The most common home with an attached rental, the duplex, isn't popular:

pGroup Privacy Housing

Above: Homeowners don't want to see or deal with renters.

Below: My patented homes with hidden attached rentals eliminate those issues. You never see or interact with your renters. The rentals are managed by a professional management company.Your renters have a separate entrance to the community at the rear of the property. The rendering below shows a one story owners ranch home with two rental units above each owners home. There is an option for a full finished basement for you. The renters outdoor area is shaded red. A wall separates the owners and renters outdoor areas. You'll never see or interact with your renters:

The management company handles all rental concerns. They collect the rent, pay the expenses and distribute the rental income equally to the owners of the community regardless of each units vacancy. The risk of vacancy is spread between all the owners insuring minimal cash flow interruption for each individual owner.

Below is a top down view showing that the renters have a separate car entrance at the back of the community. The renter car entrance and outdoor area is shaded red. It is separated from the owners outdoor area (green) by a barrier. Owners and renters never encounter each other. Each owner has a private side yard and patio which functions as your back yard:

Below shows that the front of your home looks like a single family two story home:

Below is a view of the rental units at the back of the property. The rentals are on the second floor and have a balcony as well as a fenced in area at ground level. They also have a one car attached garage. They are high quality rental units to attract premium renters.

Qualified Veterans and their spouses can buy these homes with rentals with no money down. Veterans of any age are eligible, but I don't recommend zero down financing for most people over age 60. If you're a Veteran over age 60 and own a home, check out the "Homeowner Age 60+" menu item.

A unique advantage of these income generating homes is that a portion of the rental proceeds may count as qualifying income for your loan.

To be eligible for a VA loan, you or your spouse must meet the basic service requirements set by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), have a valid Certificate of Eligibility (COE) and satisfy the lender’s credit and income requirements. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, which insures all VA home loans, doesn't require a certain credit score. But the private lenders that issue VA loans may have their own minimum credit score requirements, typically ranging from 580 to 660.

You may be eligible for a VA loan by meeting one or more of the following requirements:
-You have served 90 consecutive days of active service during wartime.
-You have served 181 days of active service during peacetime,
-You have 6 years of service in the National Guard or Reserves,
-You are the spouse of a service member who has died in the line of duty or as a result of a service-related disability.

While you don't need your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) in hand to apply for a VA loan, it is an important part of VA loan eligibility. Your COE provides the lender with confirmation that you qualify for VA loan benefits.

This mortgage information is to the best of my knowledge. I am not a mortgage lender or financial advisor.