On April 22, 2026, HUD Secretary Scott Turner and FHFA Director William J. Pulte announced that the Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac are implementing their first new credit score models for mortgages. According to the FHFA’s press release, the move is intended to lower costs for the American people after years of rising prices under the status quo credit score system.
HUD Secretary Turner said the following in a statement:
“By embracing additional predictive credit scoring models, we are taking a meaningful step toward expanding access to homeownership – particularly for creditworthy borrowers who may have been overlooked under older systems.”
The Federal Housing Administration will permit the use of VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T as eligible credit scoring models for FHA-insured mortgage underwriting. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also moving forward with the adoption of VantageScore 4.0 and FICO Score 10T, updating their selling guides to reflect these new models and immediately accepting VantageScore-based loans from approved lenders. This step advances the full implementation of the Credit Score Competition Act of 2018 and is intended to introduce greater choice and flexibility for borrowers in the mortgage market.
Read the FHFA’s announcement here.