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Reviewed by David Ghazaryan, Mortgage Broker, NMLS 1486726 · iQRATE Mortgages · Last updated: October 13, 2026
Quick answer
A Pensacola mortgage broker compares many lenders for the VA, FHA, conventional and investor loans that Gulf Coast military families and retirees use. iQRATE Mortgages (NMLS 1862492) is licensed in Florida and shops more than 100 lenders on complex files. Naval Air Station Pensacola, the home of naval aviation training, along with Whiting Field and nearby Eglin and Hurlburt Field, makes VA loans a large share of the market. Escambia County's 2026 limits are $832,750 conforming and $541,287 FHA, and the City of Pensacola's 2025 total millage was 17.008 mills.
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5.0 stars from 87 reviews on Experience.com (October 2026) · Read David's reviews on Experience.com
Pensacola buyers include student naval aviators and instructors on short tours, retirees drawn to the beaches, and families in the growing suburbs of Nine Mile Road, Beulah and Santa Rosa County. Many military buyers rent the home out when they leave, so the loan has to work both now and as a rental later.
Part of our Florida mortgage broker coverage. We're licensed in Florida under company NMLS 1862492 and work Pensacola files from our Las Vegas office, closing with local escrow and title.
Areas and ZIPs we lend in: Downtown and East Hill (32501, 32503), North Hill (32501), Cordova Park and Scenic Heights (32503, 32514), Perdido Key (32507), Pensacola Beach and Gulf Breeze (32561), Beulah and Nine Mile Road (32526, 32514), Cantonment (32533) and Milton and Pace (32570, 32571).
Civilian buyers here often work at Baptist Health or Ascension Sacred Heart, at the University of West Florida, or for defense contractors. We verify each income type the same way the lender will.
Escambia County covers Pensacola, Perdido Key, Cantonment and Pensacola Beach. Santa Rosa County, across Escambia Bay, covers Gulf Breeze, Navarre, Milton and Pace. Each county has its own property appraiser, tax collector, millage and SHIP program. Santa Rosa's school district draws many military families, while Escambia offers more older, lower-priced housing close to the NAS Pensacola gates. The 2026 conforming and FHA limits are the same in both counties, so the choice comes down to commute, schools, flood zone and insurance quotes.
Florida basics that apply here: the seller customarily pays documentary stamps on the deed ($0.70 per $100; $0.60 in Miami-Dade). The buyer pays two mortgage taxes: doc stamps on the note ($0.35 per $100 of the loan) and intangible tax (0.2% of the loan), or $2,200 on a $400,000 loan. Homeowners insurance, plus flood insurance in many zones, is among the most expensive in the country, and lenders collect the first year's premium plus escrow months, so prepaids are often the biggest part of cash to close. Owner-occupants get the homestead exemption and Save Our Homes (3% cap), but the assessment resets when a home sells. Whole-home rentals of under 30 days need a state DBPR vacation-rental license. Statewide down payment help includes Florida Hometown Heroes (5% of the loan, $10,000–$35,000, when funded) and FL Assist (up to $10,000), plus county SHIP funds.
Closing costs are what it costs you to get the loan: origination, discount points, appraisal, and escrow and title. Cash to close also includes your prepaids (first-year homeowners insurance, daily interest to month-end, and an escrow deposit for your own future property taxes and insurance) plus your down payment. Prepaids aren't a cost of the loan; they're your own bills paid ahead. In Pensacola, the first full year of homeowners insurance, flood insurance where required, and the escrow deposit are usually the largest prepaids; Pensacola premiums are usually lower than South Florida's, but homes south of US-98 and on the barrier islands cost more to insure. Your actual closing costs depend on county, price and loan type, so we don't quote a one-size range: every line is itemized on your Loan Estimate, and our Bare Bones guarantee means we add no fees of our own. Compare states on our closing costs by state page.
Escambia County: conforming $832,750 and FHA $541,287 for a one-unit home (FHFA and HUD). VA has no loan limit for borrowers with full entitlement.
Conventional (as little as 3% down for eligible first-time buyers), FHA (3.5% down, 580+ score), VA (no down payment for eligible veterans with full entitlement), jumbo above the conforming limit, DSCR loans that qualify on rent, bank statement loans for self-employed borrowers, asset-based and 1099 loans, and rate-and-term or cash-out refinances. As a broker we compare wholesale lenders, more than 100 on complex files, instead of one bank's menu.
Terms for each are on its own page; see all iQRATE guarantees.
Yes, with full entitlement there is no down payment and no VA loan limit.
It depends on the tour length and whether the home would rent for enough to cover the payment after you leave. We run both scenarios.
Yes, but most Pensacola Beach property is leased from Escambia County, and lenders need enough lease term remaining.
The City of Pensacola's 2025 total millage was 17.008 mills, or about $17 per $1,000 of taxable value.
$541,287 for a one-unit home in Escambia County. The conforming limit is $832,750.
Florida fully exempts the homestead of a veteran with a 100% permanent and total service-connected disability.
Closing costs depend on the price, loan type and county, so yours are itemized on your Loan Estimate rather than quoted as a range. Closing costs are what it costs to get the loan (origination, points, appraisal, escrow and title). Cash to close also includes prepaids and your down payment; in Pensacola, the first full year of homeowners insurance, flood insurance where required, and the escrow deposit are usually the largest prepaids; Pensacola premiums are usually lower than South Florida's, but homes south of US-98 and on the barrier islands cost more to insure.
Most of our loans close in under 30 days. For eligible full-documentation conventional, FHA and VA purchases, our goal is 17 calendar days from signing initial disclosures.
Get My Custom Rate Now · or call (702) 766-3744
iQRATE Mortgages · NMLS 1862492 · 6360 S Rainbow Blvd Ste 101, Las Vegas, NV 89118 · Licensed in Nevada, California, Texas and Florida. David Ghazaryan, Mortgage Broker, NMLS 1486726. Verify us on NMLS Consumer Access. Equal Housing Opportunity. Programs, rates and terms change and are subject to credit, property and underwriting approval; local facts on this page come from the public sources below and are not legal or tax advice.
More: Florida mortgage broker · DSCR loans · Bank statement loans · Our guarantees · Closing costs by state
