May 16, 2017
The FHA single family loan program rule book, HUD 4000.1, has a variety of rules and instructions to the lender on how FHA loan application information is to be handled and processed. You might not think those rules affect you as an applicant, but some of the rules do pertain to how the lender must collect the borrower’s information and the approved sources of that information.
Your credit scores and other data must be given to the lender from approved sources. Did you know that HUD 4000.1 does not permit the borrower to handle or transmit certain kinds of information to the lender? Your loan officer is responsible for making sure she gets the information from the proper sourcing.
According to HUD 4000.1:
“Mortgagees must not accept or use documents relating to the employment, income, assets, or credit of Borrowers that have been handled by, or transmitted from or through the equipment of unknown parties, or Interested Parties. Mortgagees may not accept or use any third party verifications that have been handled by, or transmitted from or through any Interested Party, or the Borrower.”
The “mortgagee” is the lender, who is also bound by the following in HUD 4000.1 with respect to electronic information sent as part of a loan application:
“The Mortgagee must authenticate all documents received electronically by examining the source identifiers (e.g., the fax banner header or the senders email address) or contacting the source of the document by telephone to verify the documents validity. The Mortgagee must document the name and telephone number of the individual with whom the Mortgagee verified the validity of the document.”
There are also requirements listed for how a lender must obtain information via the Internet (as opposed to being sent a digital file from another party):
“The Mortgagee must authenticate documents obtained from an Internet website and examine portions of printouts downloaded from the Internet including the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) address, as well as the date and time the documents were printed. The Mortgagee must visit the URL or the main website listed in the URL if the page is password protected to verify the website exists and print out evidence documenting the Mortgagees visit to the URL and website.”
The lender is required to insure that any documentation that comes via the Internet contains, “the same information as would be found in an original hard copy of the document”.
Speak to your loan officer to learn more about how these rules may affect your loan application if you have any questions.
Joe Wallace has been specializing in military and personal finance topics since 1995. His work has appeared on Air Force Television News, The Pentagon Channel, ABC and a variety of print and online publications. He is a 13-year Air Force veteran and a member of the Air Force Public Affairs Alumni Association. He was Managing editor for www.valoans.com for (8) years and is currently the Associate Editor for FHANewsblog.com.
Browse by Date: