Fannie Mae Selling and Servicing Policy Archives

January 5, 2022 – This Lender Letter provides information about changes to loan-level price adjustments (LLPAs) that will apply to second home and high-balance mortgage loans. The updated LLPAs are effective for all whole loans purchased on or after April 1, 2022, and for loans delivered into MBS pools with issue dates on or after April 1, 2022.

Provides a summary of Selling Guide, Servicing Guide, and other policy related communications & updates issued in 2021.

December 15, 2021 - The December Selling Guide update modifies the definition of principal residence to include military service members on active duty, clarifies required documentation when a borrower has filed an extension with the IRS, expands allowable comparable sales for new (or recently converted) projects, establishes standard requirements for measuring and calculating gross living area, and more.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (December 15, 2021)

December 8, 2021 - This Servicing Guide update consolidates into the Selling Guide certain policies regarding insurance applicable to both lenders and servicers, updates various borrower-facing servicing forms and documents, retires Form 2002, clarifies subservicer eligibility to perform general servicing duties and responsibilities for HomeStyle® Renovation mortgage loans not associated with property renovation, and adds a link to the Mortgage Insurance Claims Portal.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version (December 8, 2021)

As interest rates continue to remain low, refinances are an attractive option for many borrowers. There are many reasons a borrower may be seeking to refinance – lowering the interest rate, lowering monthly payments, shortening the loan term, moving to a fixed-rate from an ARM, moving to a different ARM index, or taking equity out of the property. We offer several refinance options. 

November 30, 2021 - Fannie Mae loan limits are increasing in 2022. The new loan limit for most of the country will be $647,200 — an 18.05% increase over the 2021 limit — and is effective for whole loans delivered to Fannie Mae and loans in MBS pools with issue dates on or after Jan. 1, 2022.

November 17, 2021 - This Servicing Guide update revises servicer requirements regarding the initial inspection order date and clarifies servicer responsibilities for instructing mortgage insurers to release data to us pertaining to a certain population of mortgage loans.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version (November 17, 2021)

November 3, 2021 - The November Selling Guide update modifies and clarifies policies related to military personnel and leave and earnings statement, permits the delivery of loans previously modified following the application of a principal curtailment and recast of the principal balance, and provides other miscellaneous updates.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (November 3, 2021)

The Document Custodian Notice includes the following topics:

• Notification of Fannie Mae’s update to the Document Transfer Job Aid
• Notice of Upcoming Change to Unrecorded Assignments to Fannie Mae Requirement

June 9, 2021 - (Republished Oct. 20, 2021) We previously communicated that the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBank) announced that it would cease publication of its 11th District Monthly Weighted Average Cost of Funds Index (COFI) after the publication of the Dec. 2021 COFI in Jan. 2022. In anticipation of this date, we are announcing our selection of a replacement index to be used for the servicing of legacy COFI mortgage loans, called the Enterprise 11th District COFI Replacement Index.

October 20, 2021 - This Lender Letter provides notice of upcoming changes to our requirement for unrecorded assignments of mortgage for loans not registered with Mortgage Electronic Registration System, Inc. (MERS). Instead of this requirement, we are requiring a one-time delivery of limited powers of attorney (Form 520), which sellers/servicers are encouraged to submit now but must complete and deliver by March 1, 2022.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version (October 13, 2021)

October 13, 2021 - This Servicing Guide update includes changes that modify the requirements for the reclassification and repurchase of regular servicing option MBS mortgage loans and simplify the submission process for requesting servicing and subservicing transfers.

October 13, 2021 - This Lender Letter specifies temporary requirements that impact the eligibility of certain condo and co-op projects. These requirements relate to significant deferred maintenance and unsafe conditions, special assessments, reserve requirements, project eligibility waivers, and more. Additionally, these requirements are designed to protect borrowers from physically unsafe or financially unstable projects, and to prudently manage risk for Fannie Mae, our lenders, and investors.

October 6, 2021 - This Selling Guide update modifies the permitted homeownership education and counseling providers to allow qualified third parties to administer homeownership education and counseling, no longer requiring the sole use of the Framework® program, when it becomes effective January 2022. Other changes include the removal of constant maturity treasury indexed-ARMs and the replacement of references to the Software Subscription Agreement Master Terms and Conditions with a new Consolidated Technology Licensing Guide.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (October 6, 2021)

We previously announced the introduction of the MI Claims Portal (MICP) and the associated MI Claims Portal Participants Exhibit, which lists the mortgage insurers that are participating in MICP. The Participants Exhibit has been updated to include two additional mortgage insurers and their applicable MICP participation effective date.

We are also clarifying that the Oct. 1, 2021 effective date for the policy change is based on the liquidation date of the mortgage loan, as reflected in both the Servicing Guide and the Participants Exhibit, and not the date on which the MI claim was filed.

The Document Custodian Notice includes the following topics:

• Notification of Fannie Mae’s Concurrent Sale of Servicing Delivery Instructions to Sellers and Servicers 

Servicing Guide - PDF Version (September 8, 2021)

September 8, 2021 - This Servicing Guide update aligns the Servicing Guide with changes related to Form 582 recently announced in SEL-2021-08, adds duties and responsibilities for all servicers with a portfolio of 20,000 or more Fannie Mae mortgage loans, and removes the requirement to conduct the final interior property inspection for a Mortgage Release™.

September 1, 2021 – This Selling Guide update allows lenders to use positive rent payment history in Desktop Underwriter ® (DU®) to help increase homeownership opportunities for certain first-time homebuyers, updates the credit score used by DU in the eligibility assessment when there are multiple borrowers, incorporates qualified mortgage policies addressed in LL-2021-11, revises Form 582 submission requirements, updates co-op document requirements, and more.