The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today sent to the Federal Register for publication a final rule on the validation and approval of third-party credit score model(s) that can be used by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises). The rule implements the requirements in Section 310 of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act enacted on May 24, 2018.
The regulation requires a four-phase process for validation and approval of credit score model(s):
- Solicitation of applications from credit score model developers;
- Submission and initial review of submitted applications;
- Credit score assessment; and,
- Enterprise business assessment.
“One of my priorities is to ensure that the American people have a safe and sound path to sustainable homeownership, which requires tools to accurately measure risk,” said FHFA Director Mark Calabria. “The final rule we are publishing today is an important step toward achieving that goal,” said Calabria.
The rule will become effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Within 60 days of this effective date, FHFA will begin review of the materials the Enterprises plan to use in the public solicitation process. After FHFA approves those materials, the Enterprises will make details of the solicitation process publicly available. FHFA will determine the date that the initial solicitation will open for credit score model developers to apply. The Enterprises’ solicitation period will remain open for 120 days.