FHA Loan Expert Blog

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New FHA Mortgagee Letter:

May 22, 2008

MORTGAGEE LETTER 2008-15

TO: ALL APPROVED MORTGAGEES

SUBJECT: FHA Loan Underwriting and Transmittal Summary, Form HUD-92900-LT and Addendum to Uniform Residential Loan Application, form HUD-92900-A 

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has developed form HUD-92900-LT, FHA Loan Underwriting and Transmittal Summary (LT) to replace both mortgage credit analysis worksheets, HUD-92900-PUR and HUD-92900-WS (MCAWs).  Lenders are reminded that they are still responsible for calculating the mortgage amount in accordance with existing FHA statutory requirements and documenting that calculation in the loan origination file.  By signing and dating this form (when required) underwriters are providing their final decision to approve the loan application for FHA mortgage insurance.  The HUD-92900-LT does not replace but will be used in conjunction with the HUD-92700-WS, the 203(k) Maximum Mortgage Worksheet…

To read this mortgagee letter and any attachments in their entirety, please visit: hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/ view the 2008 letters and click on the letter of your choice. Mortgagee Letters from previous years can be found on the same page.

All HUD Forms can be found online at: hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/forms/

Full Time, Part Time and Outside Employment. A mortgagee may employ staff full time or part time (less than the normal 40 hour work week).  They may have other employment including self?employment.  However, such outside employment may not be in mortgage lending, real estate, or a related field.  Direct endorsement underwriters are included in this provision.  An underwriter may not work on a part?time basis for any other mortgagee, even underwriting conventional mortgage loans.  An underwriter may not underwrite loans for a parent or subsidiary of the underwriter’s approved employer.  A direct endorsement underwriter’s authority is through the employer and does not extend under any corporate “umbrella.”

FHA Title II Mortgagee Approval Handbook, Directive Number: 4060.1, REV-2, August 14, 2006

Let me make this a short post on FHA and credit scores. 

There seems to be a great deal of misconceptions regarding FHA and credit scoring.  Some ‘so called’ lending professionals are telling would-be borrowers that FHA will approve loans with credit scores of (insert score below 620 here) as if this is a hard and fast rule with FHA.  Nothing, my friends, could be further from the truth.  The reality is that it has more to do with the overall look of the credit report and, yep, you guessed it, compensating factors.

Welcome to the wonderful world of FHA.