VA Loan Updates

The number of veterans enrolled in the University of Wisconsin System has increased within the last year, according to a report presented at the UW System Board of Regents meeting last Thursday.

The number of veterans enrolled in the UW System has increased from 3,188 students in fall 2006 to 3,975 in fall 2007.

Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton said the rise in veterans enrolled in the UW System can be attributed to higher numbers of veterans, as well as the number of veterans who are learning about the Wisconsin G.I. Bill.

The Wisconsin G.I. Bill waives tuition and fees at UW System schools and Wisconsin Technical Colleges for anyone who qualifies as a veteran in Wisconsin.

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At a time when American servicemen and women are risking their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan, they deserve all the help they can get.

And after battling overseas, the last thing they need is to return home and have to wage another fight against the red tape of the VA.

To that end, author David Reed has set out to ensure that at least VA loans are easier to access, and in many ways his no-nonsense book looks certain to become a useful resource.

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In terms of providing true opportunity and creating a level playing field among Americans of all walks of life, the original World War II GI Bill was perhaps the most important piece of legislation in our history.

Designed to help veterans readjust to civilian life, this landmark legislation helped 7.8 million World War II veterans pursue a college education. The program cost about $14.5 billion (in 1940s dollars), and for every dollar invested, the government estimates that $7 were generated.

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Every dollar that the United States invested in education under the original GI Bill resulted in at least a five-fold increase in economic benefits.

Those figures are from a Congressionally mandated analysis that Jerome Kohlberg cites as he argues for financing college for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The self-made financier knows himself how the country was transformed into a country of doctors, lawyers and entrepreneurs. He graduated from some of the country’s top schools, co-founded one of Wall Street’s most successful private equity firms, and became a billionaire.

And he did it on that GI Bill.

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The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today it has dramatically improved its ability to process applications for GI Bill education benefits from veterans and servicemembers.

“Our processing time is good, and it’s going to continue to get better,” said Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H. Mansfield. “These improvements come despite a 40 percent increase in applications for GI Bill benefits since 2001.”

For first-time recipients of educational benefits, the average processing time decreased from 40 days in 2006 to 32 days in 2007. Claims from veterans reenrolling for subsequent school terms or additional training programs were processed in an average of 13 days, down from 20 days in 2006.

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CHULA VISTA, Calif. - Air Force veteran Nellie Cooper thought she was following good advice when she refinanced her home’s mortgage with an adjustable-rate loan. For the self-employed real estate agent, it seemed smart.

But her mortgage payments ballooned while local property values dropped, sinking her prospects of refinancing into a more secure, fixed-rate loan. With lenders nationwide tightening eligibility rules, Cooper is finding few that are willing to refinance or rework the loan into something financially manageable for her.

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