Marine in VA Home Loan Limbo

In celebration of Veterans Day, AOL Real Estate is featuring stories about veterans and active military personnel and their real estate experiences.

For Jon Wilke, a seven-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and Army National Guard including a tour just months after 9/11, buying a home is the hardest thing he's ever done.

"It kind of feels like another deployment," Wilke, who saw active duty on multiple deployments in Europe and Bosnia, told AOL Real Estate. "I'm here in Albuquerque while my family is 18 hours away in Kentucky."

Two years ago, Wilke purchased a three-bedroom home in Albuquerque with a VA loan, which allows qualified servicemen and women to buy with no down payment and no private mortgage insurance -- a major advantage in today's market. But after a series of difficult financial decisions and personal crises that forced his family to move to Kentucky, he now wonders if he can qualify for a second VA loan to buy a home closer to them. Until then, he must travel 18 hours to visit his wife and young daughter, while his dream house in Albuquerque sits idle.

But is selling Wilke's only option?