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Is There Really a New, Unfair Mortgage Tax on Those With High Credit?

Seemingly overnight, the internet is awash with news regarding a “new,” unfair tax on mortgage borrowers with higher credit scores. Some have gone so far as to suggest that someone could intentionally lower their credit score in order to get a better deal. Before you stop paying your bills in the hope of cashing in, let’s separate fact from fiction.  First and most importantly, you will absolutely NOT get a better deal on a mortgage rate if your credit score is lower, even if your nephew just texted you a screenshot of a news headline saying “620 FICO SCORE GETS A 1.75% FEE DISCOUNT” and “740 FICO SCORE PAYS 1% FEE.”   So why would your nephew make such a claim? This all has to do with changes to Loan Level Price Adjustments (LLPAs) imposed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the “agencies”), the two entities that guaranty a vast majority of new mortgages. LLPAs are based on loan features such as your credit score and the loan-to-value ratio among other things.  They’ve been changed several times over the years and a fairly substantial change was announced in January of this year. Wait… This news is from JANUARY?!  Why are people talking about it now? Yes, in fact, we already told you about it.  People are confused because they don’t understand how “delivery dates” work when it comes to Fannie and Freddie.  Changes that impact fees and guidelines are almost always implemented based on the date the loan in question is “delivered” to Fannie/Freddie.  “Delivery,” in this context, typically occurs a matter of weeks AFTER the loan is closed, although it can be more than a month.  
Source: mortgagenewsdaily.comNew feed

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