A soldier selling a Hinesville home before a PCS move can let a buyer take over their VA loan, along with the rate they locked when borrowing was cheaper. There is a cost to the seller, though. If the buyer doesn't substitute their own VA entitlement, VA's guidance says the seller's entitlement "remains encumbered by the loan until the loan is paid in full," and the seller does not get it restored. A family that needs that entitlement to buy at the next duty station has to decide this before they list.
Fort Stewart's Basic Allowance for Housing went up for 2026, but for a buyer financing a new loan, the raise now supports less house than the smaller allowance did a year ago. Mortgage rates explain the gap, and an older loan that a buyer can take over is one of the few ways around it.
What the 2026 raise was measuring
BAH isn't a general cost-of-living bump. The Defense Department's 2026 component breakdown says rates "are based on the current local median market rent and average household utilities" in each Military Housing Area and include a five percent member cost share. Fort Stewart is area GA080, where the department counts rent as 86% of total housing cost and utilities as 14%.
Nationally, the Department of War's 2026 BAH release put the average increase at 4.2%, effective January 1, 2026. Fort Stewart did better. An E-5 with dependents went from $2,163 a month in 2025, according to the Defense Travel Management Office's 2025 rate table, to $2,310 in 2026, an increase of about 6.8%. You can check your own grade with the DoD BAH rate lookup.
Because the allowance tracks median rent, a raise above the national average suggests the department's survey found rents around Fort Stewart rising faster than in many other places. That helps renters. A buyer taking out a new mortgage pays the market rate, and the market rate rose much more.
The same raise supports a smaller loan
Freddie Mac's weekly survey put the 30-year fixed average at 7.40% as of October 15, 2026. A year earlier it was 6.27%. The table below runs the numbers for three common enlisted grades with dependents. It shows the loan amount each month's BAH could cover if every dollar went to principal and interest on a 30-year loan at each rate. The 2025 BAH is paired with the October 2025 rate, and the 2026 BAH with the current rate.
| Grade, with dependents | 2025 BAH | Loan it covers at 6.27% | 2026 BAH | Loan it covers at 7.40% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-4 | $2,040 | about $331,000 | $2,175 | about $314,000 |
| E-5 | $2,163 | about $351,000 | $2,310 | about $334,000 |
| E-6 | $2,262 | about $367,000 | $2,439 | about $352,000 |
At each of these grades, the monthly allowance went up and the loan it covers went down by roughly $15,000 to $17,000. These are rough illustrations, not a budget. They leave out property taxes, insurance, the VA funding fee and everything else that goes into a real monthly payment, so the true numbers are lower for everyone.
Military families also have an option outside this math. On-post family housing at Fort Stewart is run through Balfour Beatty Communities, and the Army's Fort Stewart newcomers housing page points arriving families there first.
Sellers are seeing the other side of it
When buyers can borrow less, homes take longer to sell. The St. Louis Fed's FRED database tracks listing data for the Hinesville metro area. In September 2026, median days on market reached 89, compared with 60 in September 2025. After easing from 81 in January to 54 by March, the climb began in late spring. Median days on market was 54 in May 2026, then 59 in June, 70 in July, 73 in August and 89 in September.
Over the same period, active listings in the metro rose from 592 in September 2025 to 778 in September 2026. The median listing price fell from $288,038 to $279,800. These are asking-price figures, not sale prices.
Closed sales give a smaller and messier picture. Georgia MLS reported 19 single-family sales in Liberty County in September 2026, with an average sold price of $262,976. In September 2025 it reported 25 sales averaging $258,848. Nineteen sales is too few to show a price trend, and Georgia MLS covers only part of this market. What these numbers do show is fewer sales and more homes waiting. Asking prices are slipping, and closed prices aren't climbing much.
For a seller, that means a longer wait and more competition. When buyers' monthly budgets are capped by a fixed allowance, an existing loan at a lower rate can be the thing that sets one listing apart from the rest.
How a VA loan assumption works
VA loans can be assumed, meaning a buyer takes over the seller's existing loan, rate and remaining balance. The VA Buyer's Guide is direct about who can do it:
"Anyone, even a non-Veteran, can assume your loan."
According to VA Circular 26-23-10, approval follows three conditions and a set timeline:
- The loan has to be current.
- The buyer has to be contractually obligated to buy the home and take on full liability for the loan.
- The buyer has to be creditworthy under VA's credit and underwriting standards.
- A loan holder or servicer with automatic authority has to decide on the application within 45 calendar days of receiving a complete one.
- If neither the holder nor the servicer has automatic authority, the complete package goes to VA for prior approval within 35 calendar days, and VA decides within 10 business days of receiving it.
The costs are set in federal regulation. Under 38 CFR 36.4313, the person assuming the loan pays VA a funding fee of one-half of one percent of the loan balance, though the regulation exempts certain veterans and qualifying surviving spouses from it. The holder's processing fee can't be more than the lesser of $300 and the actual cost of any required credit report, or any lower maximum set by state law. VA has also approved an additional locality variance. In the South region, which includes Georgia, that amount is $404.
The assumed loan covers only its remaining balance. Whatever the agreed price is above that balance has to come from somewhere else. That's where this year's table matters again. A buyer who can't borrow as much at today's rates may still be able to cover a smaller gap on top of a loan carried at an older rate.
Before a PCS seller says yes
If a veteran buyer assumes the loan and substitutes their own entitlement, VA says the seller "would receive a restoration of entitlement." To substitute, that buyer has to be eligible, plan to live in the home and have enough entitlement. If the buyer is a civilian, or a veteran who doesn't substitute, the seller's entitlement stays tied to the Hinesville loan until it's paid off.
For a soldier heading to a new duty station, that changes how much VA buying power they have at the next stop. It's a good reason to talk with a VA-approved lender before choosing which offers to consider. An assumable loan can draw more buyers, and some of those offers will leave the seller's entitlement tied up.
FAQ
Does the buyer have to be a veteran to assume a VA loan in Hinesville? No. VA's Buyer's Guide says anyone who qualifies can assume the loan, including non-veterans. Only a buyer who is an eligible veteran can substitute entitlement and release the seller's.
What does an assumption cost the buyer? Under federal regulation, the buyer pays a VA funding fee of 0.5% of the loan balance unless they qualify for one of the regulation's exemptions, which cover certain veterans and surviving spouses. The holder's processing fee is capped at the lesser of $300 and the cost of a credit report, plus VA's $404 South-region locality variance where it applies.
How long does approval take? Holders with automatic authority have 45 calendar days from a complete application. Prior-approval cases go to VA within 35 days, and VA then has 10 business days to decide.
Will the rate figures here still be accurate when I read this? The rate is Freddie Mac's average for the week of October 15, 2026, and Freddie Mac publishes a new reading every Thursday. Check the latest Freddie Mac survey before running your own numbers.
This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Before you rely on any of these rules, confirm how they apply to you with a VA-approved lender or the right professional.
If you're selling near Fort Stewart and your loan carries a rate buyers can't get today, it's worth knowing what that means for your price and your entitlement before you list. I'm glad to walk through it with you, starting with a home valuation and a look at current Hinesville sales. Reach out to Devin Pickett to book a consultation.
