Fannie Mae has issued the following Announcement:
•· Announcement 09-08, Temporary High-Cost Area Loan Limits and Revised Eligibility Requirements for High-Balance Mortgage Loans
Effective May 1, 2009, Fannie Mae will accept for delivery loans originated in 2009 using the higher of the current permanent high-cost loan limits, or the temporary loan limits that were in place for loans originated in 2008 that were applicable to jumbo-conforming mortgage loans.
In addition, new eligibility requirements will apply to high-balance loans, including:
•· Revised loan to value ratios for certain loan types
•· New minimum credit score requirements
•· Additional appraisal requirements
Refi PlusTM options (manual underwriting or Desktop Underwriter® [DU®]) are eligible for the high-balance loan feature, including those using the temporary high-cost limits. Eligibility requirements specific to Refi Plus supersede all requirements that apply to high-balance mortgage loans.
High-balance loans may be underwritten manually or in DU. (For DU, lenders must manually apply the temporary high-cost area loan limits and eligibility requirements until DU is updated in a future release.)
For a summary of key eligibility, underwriting, pricing, committing, and delivery requirements, see the new High-Balance Feature Matrix on eFannieMae.com.
