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Home / Tennessee Licensed Statewide · Firefighter-Owned

Tennessee Mortgage Broker.
From The Smokies To
The Mississippi.

Hero Mortgage Group is a firefighter-owned brokerage licensed across Tennessee. We close loans for buyers in Nashville, Knoxville, Memphis, Chattanooga, Franklin, Murfreesboro, and the small communities throughout East, Middle, and West Tennessee. No state income tax. Major active-duty installations. One of the fastest-growing housing markets in the Southeast. We work the THDA Great Choice menu, VA programs, and the full conventional and jumbo bench.

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0%
State Income Tax
THDADPA
Great Choice + $15K DPA
$832K
2026 Conforming Limit
15DAYS
Average Tennessee Close
Why Hero In Tennessee

No Income Tax.
Disciplined Financing.

Tennessee is one of the most attractive housing markets in the Southeast. No state income tax. Right-to-work economy. Nashville is among the fastest-growing metros in America. Franklin and Brentwood run premium. Knoxville is a steady university-anchored market with the Tennessee Valley Authority and Oak Ridge tech base. Memphis runs affordable with strong rental yields. Chattanooga is a riverfront comeback story with a growing tech sector. The Great Smoky Mountains and the Tri-Cities (Bristol/Kingsport/Johnson City) have their own dynamics.

Hero closes in 15 days, fully-underwritten, with THDA layered when applicable. Tennessee's combination of no income tax, reasonable property tax, and strong job growth makes it one of the highest-velocity markets we serve. We also handle the Fort Campbell (KY/TN border) VA volume routinely.

Programs · Tennessee

THDA, VA, FHA,
+ The Full Menu.

THDA Great Choice.

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency's flagship first-time-buyer program. Pairs a competitive 30-year fixed first mortgage (FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional) with the Great Choice Plus DPA — typically $6,000 - $15,000 in down payment assistance as a 0% deferred second mortgage. Income limits scale by household size and county; price cap is generally $400,000 statewide, with some Nashville-area counties higher.

THDA also runs the Homeownership for Heroes overlay that gives first responders, veterans, active military, and educators a 0.5% interest rate discount on the Great Choice first mortgage. We pre-screen eligibility on every Tennessee file.

VA Loans In Tennessee.

Tennessee has roughly 470,000 veterans plus an active-duty footprint that includes Fort Campbell (the 101st Airborne, on the TN/KY border), Naval Support Activity Mid-South (Millington, north of Memphis), and Arnold Air Force Base (Tullahoma). The 2026 baseline VA loan limit is $832,750 statewide — Tennessee has no high-cost counties. Full-entitlement veterans buy at any price with $0 down.

FHA In Tennessee.

2026 FHA single-family limits sit at the baseline $524,225 across most of Tennessee, with the Nashville metro (Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford counties) bumping slightly higher. Multi-unit limits scale up. Tennessee's mid-priced housing stock plays well with FHA.

Jumbo In Nashville & Franklin.

Williamson County (Franklin, Brentwood, Nolensville) routinely runs jumbo. Belle Meade and parts of West Nashville also push above conforming. We place these files with portfolio lenders that have appetite for Middle Tennessee — including some that handle entertainment-industry and music-business income, which often has 1099 and royalty components most lenders don't structure cleanly.

Non-QM & The Self-Employed.

Tennessee's economy has a heavy self-employed and 1099 component — music industry, healthcare contractors, construction. Our Non-QM bank-statement and 1099-only programs serve files where tax returns understate true cash flow. DSCR investor loans serve Memphis and Chattanooga investors well — both markets have strong rent-to-value ratios.

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Tennessee · Statewide Coverage

East, Middle, & West
Tennessee.

Tennessee FAQ

Questions From Tennessee
Buyers, Answered.

What's the THDA Great Choice program and do I qualify?

Tennessee Housing Development Agency's flagship first-time-buyer program. Bond-rate 30-year fixed first mortgage (FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional) paired with $6,000 - $15,000 in DPA as a deferred second mortgage. Income limits typically $112K-$140K depending on household size and county; price cap generally $400,000 statewide. We pre-screen eligibility on every Tennessee file. If you're a first responder, veteran, active military, or educator, we also check the Homeownership for Heroes overlay for a rate discount on top.

I'm stationed at Fort Campbell. Where should I buy?

Most 101st Airborne families buy on the Tennessee side (Clarksville, Montgomery County) for the lower property tax and the housing supply. Some buy in Kentucky (Oak Grove, Hopkinsville) for the slightly different market. We can structure VA loans on either side — Hero is licensed in both Kentucky and Tennessee. Full entitlement = $0 down up to $832,750 (TN side) with no county cap above that. We routinely handle PCS files for the 101st.

Tennessee has no state income tax. How does that affect my mortgage qualification?

It doesn't directly affect DTI (lenders qualify on gross income, not net) — but it does mean Tennessee buyers typically have more take-home pay relative to their qualifying income than buyers in income-tax states. If you're relocating from California, New York, or another income-tax state, your real disposable income jumps significantly even at the same gross salary. We model the full picture in your pre-approval discussion.

What's the loan limit in Nashville & Williamson County for 2026?

The 2026 baseline single-family conforming loan limit is $832,750 statewide — Tennessee has no FHFA-designated high-cost counties, including in the Nashville metro. Above $832,750, files run jumbo. Williamson County (Franklin, Brentwood) routinely sees jumbo activity, especially in established neighborhoods and luxury new construction. We place these with portfolio lenders that handle Middle Tennessee well.

I work in music / entertainment. How do you qualify 1099 + royalty income?

Music industry income is one of the more complex structures in mortgage lending — performance fees, songwriter royalties, mechanical royalties, streaming income, session work, label advances. Conventional loans want 2 years of tax returns with stable income. Where the returns don't tell the whole story, we use Non-QM bank-statement programs (12-24 months of business deposits as income) or 1099-only programs. We've structured Music Row income files often enough to know which lender to send each file type to.

Is Memphis a good buy-and-hold rental market?

Memphis has historically had one of the strongest rent-to-value ratios among major U.S. metros. DSCR investor loans work well here — we qualify on the property's projected rent rather than your personal tax returns. Common Memphis investor structure: 25% down, DSCR 1.0+, 30-year fixed. We can stack multiple DSCR loans for portfolio builders, with no limit on the number of financed properties.

How fast can you close a Tennessee mortgage?

Our average Tennessee close is 15 days from contract acceptance. Variables: appraisal turn (5-8 days in major metros, 10-14 days in rural East Tennessee and the Smokies due to appraiser availability), title (Tennessee runs fast — typically 3-5 days), and THDA layering if applicable adds 2-3 days for the program review. VA IRRRL and FHA Streamline refinances often close in 10 days.

For Every Tennessee Buyer

No Income Tax.
Disciplined Lending.

No documents required to start. THDA eligibility and Tennessee-specific programs verified on the first call.

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