Originally published: 2026-10-06T20:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.
Many Native American Veterans want to return home to their tribal lands after their military service ends so they can be close to family and reconnect with the culture, traditions and community that shaped them. For many, this dream becomes reality through the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Native American Direct Loans (NADL) program.
Each year, thousands of Native American Veterans use NADL to buy, build, renovate or refinance homes on tribal lands, and now VA is making the program even more affordable. As of Oct. 1, 2026, VA lowered the NADL interest rate from 2.50% to 2.47%.
The NADL program provides direct loans to eligible Native American Veterans, service members, surviving spouses and Veterans who are married to Native American non-Veterans, so they can buy, build, renovate or refinance homes. In addition to the low interest rates, NADL offers other benefits, like no down payments, limited closing costs and no monthly mortgage insurance costs.
In 1992, Congress established the NADL program for Native American Veterans due to difficulties in accessing mortgages to buy homes on federal trust lands. In addition to Native Americans, Native Hawaiians and Alaska Natives, Pacific Islanders (including American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam) can also access the NADL program. Since the program’s inception, VA has signed 121 Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with tribal governments, opening up the NADL program for those tribes.
“Lowering the NADL interest rate reflects VA’s commitment to ensuring more Native American Veterans can access this earned benefit,” said Loan Guaranty Service Executive Director Patrick Zondervan. “For Native American Veterans, homeownership can mean more than having a place to live, it can mean returning to a community, raising a family near loved ones and passing on cultural traditions to the next generation. VA is proud to honor their service through the NADL program.”
Native American Veterans who close their loan on or after Oct. 1, 2026, will automatically receive the 2.47% interest rate for the life of the loan.
Please visit the NADL website or attend an informational session to learn more about the program. To be eligible, a Veteran or their spouse must be a member of a federally recognized tribe that has signed an MOU with VA. To guide tribes in better understanding the MOU process, a video is available on the Loan Guaranty Training webpage under menu option ‘Native American Direct Loans’.
VA is committed to working with tribal communities throughout the country to expand the NADL program.
Native American Veterans who are interested in the NADL program can contact a NADL coordinator by emailing NADL@va.gov or by calling 888-349-7541.
Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Its Veterans is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.
