You might not know that the VA charges you a "funding fee" when you use a VA home loan. The fee is required by law and is used by the department to offset the taxpayers' cost of offering the benefit. This funding fee can range from 1.25% to 2.4% of the loan value for first-time homebuyers. But there is a little-known exemption to this rule. Veterans who have been awarded a VA disability rating are exempt from the funding fee. This means that even if you are rated at 0% disability, you are exempt from paying that fee. Surviving spouses of veterans who died in service or as a result of a VA-rated disability are also eligible for this exemption. Now the VA is notifying veterans in their home loan welcome that they may qualify for the exemption. Read more on Military.com.