Fannie Mae Selling and Servicing Policy Archives

May 13, 2024 – Area median incomes (AMIs) for 2024 will be implemented in Desktop Underwriter® (DU®) and HomeReady® application programming interfaces (APIs), Loan Delivery, and the Area Median Income Lookup Tool effective May 19. The AMIs will continue to be applied in DU based on the casefile create date while the Application Received Date provided in Loan Delivery will be used to determine which AMI limit to use when evaluating eligibility for the loan-level price adjustment (LLPA) waiver.

May 8, 2024 – The May Servicing Guide update includes changes to clarify the submission requirements for Audited Financial Statements, Form 1001, and Form 582, as well as other miscellaneous updates.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version  (May 8, 2024)

May 8 – We are responding to concerns heard regarding lenders’ and servicers’ ability to comply with our long-standing policy to obtain the replacement cost value following our Feb. Selling Guide and Servicing Guide Announcements.

May 1, 2024 – In May, the Selling Guide has been updated to introduce a definition for a first-generation homebuyer loan, added requirements for a borrower-initiated appeals process for appraisals, clarified when an Affidavit of Affixture is required for manufactured housing loans, expanded our shared equity policies related to manufactured housing in community land trust properties, allow sellers/servicers to designate MERS as the nominee for the beneficiary in the security instrument for co-op share loans, updated requirements for submission of financial statements and reports, added details to supplement previously issued policy requirements pertaining to trust income, and other miscellaneous updates.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (May 1, 2024)

April 15, 2024 – We are aware of the proposed settlement agreement, subject to court approval, announced by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) in the Burnett et al and Moehrl et al cases. While there are no immediate changes to our Selling Guide policies, we are clarifying the current treatment of seller-paid real estate agent fees under our interested party contributions (IPCs) policy.

March 13, 2024 – This announcement adds instructions to the Loan Modification Agreement (Form 3179) in response to New York’s Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act and the instructional provision related to MERS and provides other miscellaneous updates.

March 6, 2024 – In March, the Selling Guide has been updated to expand the DU validation service to allow income and employment validation using an asset verification report.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (March 6, 2024)

Portfolio FIN Recon Job Aid

February 14, 2024 – The February Servicing Guide update clarifies servicer responsibilities related to monitoring and verification of property insurance coverage and provides other miscellaneous updates.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version  (February 14, 2024)

February 7, 2024 – The February Selling Guide expands the value acceptance + property data offering to include condos, clarifies the qualifying rate for 7- and 10-year ARMS, allows cash-out refinances for manufactured homes with terms up to 30 years, updates eligible types of nontraditional credit references, clarifies policies for the use of business income, clarifies property insurance coverage requirements, updates mortgage origination definitions, and includes other miscellaneous updates.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (February 7, 2024)

Provides a summary of Selling Guide, Servicing Guide, and other policy related communications & updates issued in 2023.

December 20, 2023 – The December Servicing Guide update advises large non-depository sellers/servicers of updates to the frequency of financial reporting requirements and provides other miscellaneous updates.

Servicing Guide - PDF Version  (December 20, 2023)

December 13, 2023 – The December Selling Guide has been updated to permit lenders to use alternative options to meet verbal verification of employment requirements, allow optional use of Income Calculator to determine the monthly qualifying income for self-employed borrowers, and more.

Selling Guide - PDF Version (December 13, 2023)

Updated December 13, 2023 - The Servicing Notice announces that the replacement index that will be used for servicing our legacy single-family LIBOR mortgage loans is the spread-adjusted term SOFR administered by the CME Group Benchmark Administration, LTD. and published by Refinitiv Limited. The Federal Reserve Board selected the replacement rates as required by the Adjustable Interest Rate (LIBOR) Act and in anticipation of LIBOR’s cessation on the day after June 30, 2023.

Updated December 13, 2023 – This Lender Letter updates policies previously published in LL-2023-07 (and updated on Aug. 9 2023) to clarify that, when the servicer is evaluating a borrower for a Fannie Mae Flex Modification in the circumstance where the borrower has become 60 days delinquent within 6 months of a COVID-19 payment deferral’s effective date and the servicer has been unable to achieve QRPC, the servicer is not required to have reported the mortgage loan with reason for delinquency code 022, Energy-Environment Costs, prior to the date of the Flex Modification evaluation.

Updated November 29, 2023 - The October Servicing Guide updates the Loan Modification Agreement including with additional instructions, updates Fannie Mae’s minimum requirements for law firms selected and retained for default-related legal services, and other miscellaneous updates.

November 28, 2023 - Fannie Mae loan limit values are increasing in 2024. The new loan limit for most of the country will be $766,550 — a 5.56% increase over the 2023 limit — and is effective for whole loans delivered to Fannie Mae and loans in MBS pools with issue dates on or after Jan. 1, 2024.

November 1, 2023 – The November Selling Guide has been updated to prohibit an employment offer or contract for future employment from a family member or interested party to a transaction, updates general lender requirements regarding lender staffing, training, and policies and procedures to maintain seller/servicer eligibility, clarifies the policy to acknowledge an unauthorized transfer of ownership or change in occupancy status, and updates the Special Lender Approval Form (Form 1000A) to make it easier for lenders to apply to sell or acquire servicing for HomeStyle® Renovation Mortgages.