WASHINGTON—Fannie Mae said it is updating its Selling Guide to expand the credit score models lenders may use, a move the company said is aimed at advancing ongoing efforts to modernize credit scoring across the housing finance system.
According to Fannie Mae, the changes allow for the immediate use of VantageScore 4.0 and the future use of FICO Score 10T for loans delivered to the company. The updates are part of a broader credit score modernization initiative led by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Fannie Mae said it also plans to publish historical credit score data for both models later this summer. That will include data for loans acquired between April 2013 and September 2025 for FICO Score 10T, along with additional data for VantageScore 4.0 covering April 2023 through September 2025.
‘Fosters Greater Competition’
The company said the changes are intended to foster greater competition and innovation in credit scoring, potentially lower lending costs and provide additional insights to support industry participants during the transition.
Fannie Mae said newer credit score models incorporate additional data, such as on-time rent payment histories and trended credit data, which may provide a more comprehensive view of a borrower’s creditworthiness and allow more consumers to be accurately scored.
The rollout will begin on a limited basis with approved lenders to help ensure operational readiness before broader adoption. Lenders participating in the initial phase may use VantageScore 4.0 from each credit bureau through a tri-merge credit report when originating and delivering loans to Fannie Mae, the company said.
‘Multi-Year Effort’
Lenders not included in the limited rollout must continue using Classic FICO scores from each bureau through a tri-merge credit report until VantageScore 4.0 becomes widely available, according to Fannie Mae.
The updates represent another step in what the company described as a multi-year effort to modernize credit scoring, strengthen risk management and expand the tools available to lenders evaluating borrower creditworthiness.
