the current market shift — lenders willing to take on slightly more risk with lower-scoring borrowers — is borne out by new data from mortgage software giant Ellie Mae. In its latest study of rates, scores, down payments and other loan terms, researchers found that in December of last year, fully two-thirds — 66.1 percent — of homebuyers insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) had FICO scores below 700.
A remarkable 5.1 percent of these had deep subprime scores between 500 and 599, indicating exceptionally high risk of future default. At the other end of the scale, just 1.9 percent had FICO scores of 800 or above.
To be fair, FHA traditionally has served homebuyers with lower scores than those in the conventional market served by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But the agency has been slightly more lenient recently on scores and debt-to-income ratios.
Fannie and Freddie also have been open to a wider swath of buyers than many home shoppers might assume. According to Ellie Mae’s December report, more than 1 percent of conventional purchase-loan borrowers had deep subprime FICO scores between 500 and 599. More than one in six loans — 17.7 percent — had scores below 700.
In both FHA and conventional loans, borrowers with low scores may have had “mitigating factors” in their applications that reduced risk, such as high bank reserves or exceptional employment stability.
Joel Lobb (NMLS#57916)
Senior Loan Officer
Senior Loan Officer
American Mortgage Solutions, Inc.
10602 Timberwood Circle Suite 3
