An increasing number of veterans and service members are availing of the VA home loan programs to purchase a home, or to refinance their existing loans, according to a post on the Veterans Affairs website.

Eric Shinseki, Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, shared: “Home ownership is one of the foundations of the American dream… VA is honored to administer a benefit that for two-thirds of a century has profoundly affected the lives of our Veterans, our military Service members, and their families.”

The VA Home Loan Program started in 1944 as part of the GI Bill. Since then, it has guaranteed more than 19 million home loans, with an aggregate value of $1 trillion. Over the past four years, an increase of 63 percent in the number of veterans who were able to purchase a home was seen.

The VA Home Loan Program is unique in that it is committed to helping their borrowers keep their homes should they run into financial difficulties. This commitment has helped more than 150,000 families hold on to their homes even after these have been threatened with foreclosure.