| Freddie Enhances Relief Refinance Mortgage Guidelines – Part 1 – Bulletin 2009-9 (Effective April 16, 2009) — May 2009
All of the changes and enhancements from Freddie are common sense and help to make these loans a little easier to get done. Other than forcing the client to go back to the original servicer, Freddie\'s refinance options are far superior to Fannie\'s.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin 2009-9 - April 16, 2009)
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| Freddie Mac Temporarily Increases Super Conforming Loan Limits – Part 2 Bulletin 2009-9 (Effective May 4, 2009) — May 2009
Whenever we get something--they seem to take something away. While loan limits are increased, guidelines and LTV\'s have been reduced. With rates remaining attractive, it is a great opportunity to reach out to your high balance borrowers who may benefit from these temporarily increased loan limits.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin 2009-9, April 16, 2009 )
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| Freddie Revises Condominium Requirements (Effective July 1, 2009) — April 2009
This is one of the few times Freddie is stricter than Fannie. Read Fannie’s PERS article. Even after approved by Fannie, Freddie still wants to review! But why?
(Freddie Mac Bulletin 2009-7 - March 31, 2009)
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| Freddie Mac - Sale or Conversion to Rental of Primary Residence - Includes Mortgage Talking PointsTM flyer "Rules When a Client Buys a Home and Current Home is Not Sold" — April 2009
Still a lot of confusion on what happens when a client will not be selling their current home before buying another one. We have re-capped the details (all in one place) that covers both Freddie and Fannie and outlined several differences between the two.
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| Freddie Mac Condo Reference Chart - Freddie Mac Condo Reference Chart Included — March 2009
Freddie made some major changes to their condo approvals and we have created a downloadable Freddie Mac Condo Reference Chart (current as of March, 2009).
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| Freddie Mac Unveils New Relief Refinance Mortgagesm Options for Servicers (Effective 4-1-09 to 6-10-2010) — March 2009
For Freddie-to-Freddie Loans—For servicers only! Talk about flexibility! If you are a loan officer who does NOT service Freddie Mac loans but the loan has been sold to Freddie, why not tell your past clients! It can only serve to help you get more referrals in the end. Fannie has their own version—which IS available to LO’s!
(Freddie Mac Bulletin 2009-5)
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| Freddie Revises Loan Level Price Adjustments Again - Playing One Upsmanship with Fannie? — February 2009
I can go higher than you can! Amazing how the two keep “raising” prices and blaming it on falling house prices. Like higher cost of borrowing is going to help, duh! All LLPAs are cumulative. Missing an adjustment can be a very costly mistake. Remember, to check both Freddie and Fannie because there are subtle pricing differences.
(01-30-09 Bulletin - Post Settlement Delivery Fees)
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| Freddie Mac Clarifies Establishing Borrowers Credit Reputation & Manual Underwriting — February 2009
After the refi boom, we will all be looking for ways to make deals work. Knowing how to document and put together a manually underwritten file may give you a competitive advantage. With many investors tightening their requirements for FHA, now may be a good time to get familiar with the manual underwriting criteria for Freddie. Quick Tip: A documented savings pattern for at least 12 months, counts as an acceptable non-credit related trade line.
(Freddie Overview Manually Underwritten Requirements, January 30, 2009 - Pages 8&9)
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| Fannie Versus Freddie: Handy Streamline Refi Comparison Quick Reference Guide — February 2009
Review the new comparison chart we have provided and use it to expedite your approvals and close your loans quickly. Both Fannie and Freddie offer options that have no seasoning requirements. This can help should we see rate move down even further. Do NOT run DU on a streamline refinance. And yes, Freddie is much tougher than Fannie!
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| Comparing Fannie & Freddie Qualifying Rules for Investment Properties - Including Mortgage Talking Points® Flyer "Working with Real Estate Investors - Know the Rules" — February 2009
Investors are buying more properties then ever and it’s about time one of the agencies realized that investors could help with the housing crisis. Mortgage Talking Points® Flyer includes Fannie Announcement 09-02 (2-6-09) new guidelines. Fannie opened the doors for well- qualified investors to purchase property at reasonable terms. Show your real estate agents to get investors back in the game.
(Freddie Mac - Fannie Mae Selling Guides)
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| Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC): What We Know and What We Don't Know! Effective May 1, 2009 — January 2009
Freddie Mac has adopted the Home Valuation Code of Conduct effective with all loan applications and all loans purchased 5-1-09. Fannie Mae wrote their own 6-page FAQ dated January 2009. Recognize that Freddie Mac does not always interpret the rules “exactly” the same way Fannie does. Here’s what we know, what we don’t know, including the good, the bad and the ugly!
(Freddie Mac Bulletin, January 7, 2009: Home Valuation Code of Conduct)
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| Freddie Mac Manual Underwriting Guidelines, Minimum Waiting Periods for Foreclosures, Short Sales, Deed in Lieu, and More. — December 2008
Part II is manual underwriting, plain and simple. Skip it at your own risk – because nobody underwrites manually anymore. Right? Well, I beg to disagree. Whether underwriters admit it or not, most will underwrite manually if they believe in the loan file. There are more and more reasons that Lenders are forced to manually underwrite!
(Freddie Mac Bulletin - October 17, 2008)
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| Freddie Mac: Product, Property & Underwriting Changes Including 45% DIT; HomePossible® Updates; Appraisal Addendums & More — December 2008
We’ve got two zingers here: (#1) – Freddie actually backed off on their threat to implement a 45% DTI on ALL loans. It will only apply to manually underwritten mortgages. Fantabulous! Especially for super-conforming loans!
(#2) - 100% financing with Freddie is out the door for good. Wait, there’s more! This Bulletin is crammed with changes that affect you.
(Freddie Mac, November 24, 2008 Bulletin)
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| Freddie Mac Loan Prospector (LP) Updates - Changes Accept Plus, Super Conforming & Price/Credit — December 2008
This is about what’s updated in LP; it is NOT about rule changes. But please, don’t discount it! It’s quite a big deal. Do you have any of these loans sitting in your pipeline? Not only can you have PO’d Realtors – you could lose the deal altogether.
(Freddie News, November 18, 2008)
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| Accept Plus Risk Classification Eliminated Entirely-Review Your Pipeline NOW! — Freddie Mac Loan Prospector News October 31 2008 November 2008
This is just one more in a long list of Freddie\'s tightening their guidelines. My guess is that the lenders won\'t take chances and you will probably have to fund all of your Accept Plus loan files by 12-7-08 or before. This means that lenders are enforcing it NOW.
(Freddie Mac Loan Prospector News, October 31, 2008)
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| Freddie Has Followed Fannie with Higher Fees for High-Risk Mortgages - LTV Charts Easier to Use! — Additional Fees Lower LTVs for Higher Risk Mortgages includes IO Second Homes Investment Property Mortgages with Secondary Financing more November 2008
The January 2009 date is entirely misleading. Realistically, Freddie is giving absolutely NO notice; lenders must change their fees/LTVs immediately in order to deliver the closed and funded loan to Freddie by 1-2-09. PLUS the LTV Reductions – are NOT yet incorporated into LP. It’s a scary prospect, but they must be implemented manually. LTV Chart For Subscribers.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin, October 17, 2008)
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| Phase Out of Temporary Conforming Jumbo to Permanent Status - But With Some Variations! — Freddie Mac Super Conforming Mortgages Phase Out a Temporary Conforming Jumbo to Permanent Loan Amount Status November 2008
1- to 4- Unit NOO Properties, 2 to 4’s for Primary Residence, and $100,000 cash back on 2 to 4’s – Oh My!! These are definitely not the same animal as the Conforming Jumbo. But, what is way cool, is that Super Conforming opens the door to a lot of other loan types, such as 1-to-4 unit investment properties, for instance.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin, October 17, 2008 - Super Conforming Mortgages)
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| Underwriting Changes, DTI, Minimum Indicator Score, Owns Home Buying Another, Refi Changes... — November 2008
What they’ve done is make changes to just about every single aspect of their program including underwriting, eligibility, loan-to-values, fees…everything. Freddie has ALSO announced that they intend to make a bunch of changes effective 2-1-09, but so far it’s not official. Because everyone keeps hearing about them, included in this article is a Rule Synopsis with “Changes Pending, Not Official”. It really doesn’t matter much if something is official or not if your lenders are changing their rules, but I hate reading in all of the blogs when they don’t have their facts right.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin - October 17, 2008)
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| Freddie follows Fannie - Market Condition Fee Doubles — Freddie Mac Bulletin August 8 2008 September 2008
What’s happening is a result of the increased foreclosures and delinquencies. With the sophistication of the technology available, high-risk loan features become more identifiable and quantifiable.
Helpful Hint: Note that 15-year loans are not subject to the credit score/loan-to-value price hits. Every time you shorten the term you reduce the risk.
Obviously, many of your clients can’t afford 15-year term mortgages, but think about shortening the term any time you can. It can help with loan approvals.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin, August 8, 2008)
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| Freddie Mac Warns LP Users Because Maximum LTV Not Updated in Auto-Underwriting System. — Freddie Mac August SingleFamily News August 2008 Issue September 2008
Oh My Gawsh! These changes were made effective June 1, and Freddie still hasn’t updated LP!
What concerns me the most goes something like this: the loan officer takes a loan application and passes it on to the Processor who receives an LP approval. Assuming everything is fine and dandy, the LO moves on to the next deal as the ineligible loan is processed. The day before closing, the transaction is rejected and must be entirely restructured, if possible. Or worse, the loan is closed – and unsalable.
However, Freddie wouldn’t have “reminded” everyone if there wasn’t a problem.
(Freddie Mac August Single-Family News; August 2008 Issue)
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| Median Income to be used for HomePossible® — Freddie Mac Bulletin July 31 2008 August 2008
Every year we hear the new “area median adjusted gross income” figures. If you don’t know what they’re about, you may want to pay attention – especially if you’re not FHA-approved! A HomePossible® Mortgage is one of the best alternatives for getting borrowers approved that are not quite as “perfect” as the other Fannie & Freddie borrowers.
(Freddie Mac Bulletin, July 31, 2008)
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| Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Maximum Loan Limits, 2009 and Beyond; End of Year Decrease - Mortgage Talking PointsTM Flyer/Email Notice Included — HR3221ENR Sec1124 Conforming Loan Limits August 2008
Are Limits Permanent? - I also keep hearing that the new limits are permanent. What\'s permanent is the methodology and percentages of the loan amount calculations. Also, thank goodness, the floor and the ceiling will never go down.
Act Now - Send a written announcement to residents of the counties that you do business in that are currently at the $729,750. Include something like: "After 12-31-08, the maximum conforming mortgage loan in your area goes down and it can affect you personally! Act now to avoid higher mortgage rates!!"
(H.R.3221.ENR Sec.1124.Conforming Loan Limits)
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| Holding Lenders and Brokers Accountable for High Quality and Accurate Appraisals — Freddie Mac Bulletin May 29 2008 June 2008
Realize that the lender is held entirely accountable, every bit as much as the appraiser, for everything on the appraisal.
It is not acceptable to ask an appraiser to run comps to come up with a preliminary value, then move onto the next, and the next, and even the next appraiser until you find the value that you want. (See related checklist: Are You In Compliance Checklist)
Responsibilities for Good Appraisals(Freddie Mac Bulletin, May 29, 2008)
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| Declining Market Policy Withdrawn - Replaced by Reduced LTVs — Freddie Mac Bulletin May 29 2008 June 2008
Freddie came up with this Announcement on May 29th implementing a policy with significant consequences that affects loan applications as of June 1st. If you have another Freddie chart dated 6-1-08, trash it.
Then Freddie has the audacity to tell us (in a rather rude manner, I might add) that LP won\'t catch the new LTVs, and that the lenders better "conduct a manual review". And if the lender screws up...it\'s not Freddie\'s problem.
Declining Markets, Declining LTVs(Freddie Mac Bulletin, May 29, 2008)
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| Expanded Fannie Mae Jumbos - With Freddie Jumbo Comparisons — June 2008
It\'s about time that Fannie finally came up to the plate with their jumbo products! We all know that the details can make or break a loan, so I\'m doing a lot of Fannie/Freddie comparisons.
I\'m surprised by how many differences there are between the two agencies. Use the differences to your advantage and go get\'em while you can!
But beware! LP approvals do not override Freddie\'s Jumbo eligibility requirements, which include credit scores and DTIs.
Expanded Fannie Mae Jumbos(Fannie Mae Announcement 08-11, May 16, 2008)
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| Four-Property Ownership Limit Rule - Get Your Clients to Buy or Refi Before This Goes Into Effect on August 1, 2008 — Freddie Mac Bulletin April 22 2008 May 2008
They just keep making it tougher and tougher for Investor loans and recentely, 2nd home mortgage restrictions are closing in! I find it amusing that these are the exact same rules that were in effect 10-15 years ago.
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| Refinance Seasoning Revised for Cash-Out and No Cash-Out: Could Affect Construction-to-Perm — Freddie Mac Bulletin dated April 22 2008 May 2008
Leave it to Freddie to create unique and convoluted seasoning requirements for refinances. As if seasoning isn\'t already complicated enough! Read new changes - effective 8-1-2008.
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| Properties Located in Declining Markets - LTV Explained — Freddie Mac Bulletin dated April 22 2008 May 2008
Most lenders were reducing LTV, TLTV and HTLTV for a long time, but this makes it clear. Effective 6-1-2008. Freddie allows two exceptions, one for streamlined refinances and one for Freddie to Freddie no cash-out refinances.
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| New Underwriting Transmittal Form 1077 (Form 1008) with Revised Condo Categories — Freddie Mac Bulletin Number 200802 dated April 17 2008 May 2008
The form is revised because all of the Freddie Condo requirements changed effective 3-1-08. If you\'re originating, processing or underwriting Freddie condos, you must understand the new requirements! Below is a listing of the new Freddie Condo categories and a link to where you can find a description and explanation.
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| Home Possible® Education & Other Changes, 4 Freddie Programs Eliminated — Freddie Mac Bulletin dated April 22 2008 May 2008
The Home Possible program has changed quite a bit and it\'s worth repeating. Freddie finally updated their Home Possible Mortgage Fact Sheet (not previously available). It\'s an excellent reference for those who use this program and/or work with moderate income homebuyers.
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| Oh no! Another pricing adjustment - New Fees based on LTV, FICO, Cash-out, 2-to-4 units — Freddie Mac Bulletin March 13 2008 April 2008
I will admit, it\'s the first time that I\'ve seen Freddie NOT charge a fee that they had announced. My guess is that it\'s political...but no matter, the .30% fee that would have affected over half of the loans is gone! The second bullet will have a big impact on cash-out refinances.
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| Jumbo Conforming Requirements, Reasons to Use Freddie over FHA and Fannie — Freddie Mac Update March 13 2008 April 2008
I don\'t quite understand why Freddie Mac didn\'t write a Bulletin or a Letter or something else. All they did was post this information on their website, and I think it\'s rather important information! The following are my concerns and comments. So you know which product to use, look for the comparisons to Fannie Mae and FHA at the end of the comments.
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| FREDDIE CONDOMINIUMS, Part II, with FANNIE CONDO COMPARISONS — March 2008
Lender Warranties - What "Fully Warrantable" means, New Condo Projects and Existing Condo Projects
Investor/Non-Owner Occupied Condo Loans
Established Projects - Fully Warrantable
New Projects - Fully Warrantable
Small Condo Projects; 2-to-4 Units in Project
Overall Conclusion explains and compares the Fannie CPM process.
Subscriber Download: Comprehensive Charts with Fannie and Freddie Condominium Requirements.
Supporting Resources:
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| State Anti-Predatory Lending Laws. How to get your hands on the elusive Exclusionary List. (Link provided.) — Bulletin 20081 February 20 2008 March 2008
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| Conclusion to Part I and Part II (Freddie Condos with Fannie Comparisons) — March 2008
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| Maximum LTV Reduced to 97%; Eliminated - Freddie 100 and Streamlined Purchase; Alt 97 Revised; Home Possible Revised (Download Information Sheets and Introductory Kit) — Freddie Mac Bulletin February 21 2008 March 2008
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| Declining Markets: Reductions to LTV — Freddie Mac Bulletin February 21 2008 March 2008
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| Fee/Pricing Increase, Credit Scores (Indicator Scores) and LTV Driven (Download new fee structure) — Freddie Mac Bulletin February 21 2008 March 2008
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| Freddie Mac - Condominium Requirements Entirely Revised: New versus Established; Streamlined Reviews; Detached Units; Manufactured Housing Condos; FHA and Fannie Mae Reciprocal Reviews — Freddie Mac Bulletin 122107 effective 312008 February 2008
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| Added .25% to Offset Adverse Market Conditions. — Freddie Mac Bulletin December 11 2007 January 2008
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| Lender Warranties for Condominiums and Condo Eligibility Requirements Revised — Freddie Mac Bulletin December 21 2007 January 2008
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| How to Comply with Privacy Laws: Gramm-Leech-Bliley - Safeguard Act — Freddie Mac Bulletin 20075 December 19 2007 January 2008
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| Increase in Loan Fees and Pricing — Freddie Mac Bulletin December 21 2007 January 2008
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