/BRIEFING · September 13, 2026
The limited rollout ended on September 9. One real limit remains, and it is the one worth knowing before you promise a borrower anything.
Primary source: FHFA, Credit Scores policy page · Fannie Mae Lender Letter LL-2026-06 · Freddie Mac, Credit Score Models and Reports Initiative
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac expanded VantageScore 4.0 to all approved lenders and removed the requirement for prior written approval. Until then it ran as a limited rollout, and whether a borrower could be scored on the newer model depended on which lender their file sat with.
That distinction is gone. Any approved lender may now use it on eligible loans sold to the agencies.
It applies to loans underwritten through the automated system. A manually underwritten file must still use the classic score, and the agency minimums for manual underwriting still apply.
That matters more than it sounds. The files most likely to benefit from a newer scoring model are often the same files that end up manually underwritten, so the question to ask is not only whether a lender offers it but whether this particular file will run through automated underwriting at all.
VantageScore 4.0 can score on a shorter credit history than the classic model, and it can count rent where the landlord or property manager actually reports it. Where there is no reporting, there is no benefit.
What it mainly does is make more people scoreable. Someone with a short history, no recent activity, or a rental record and little else can come back with a score where the older model returned none.
It does not fix a debt-to-income problem, an income documentation problem, or collections. A file that fails for one of those still fails.
It does not mean anyone scores higher. The two models use different scales, so there is no basis for comparing a number from one against a number from the other.
It does not change what a lender charges. Nothing about this makes a rate better, and anyone telling you otherwise is guessing.
A tri-merge credit report is still required. Commentary about moving to fewer bureaus is discussion rather than policy, and nothing has been filed.
Agency approval is not the same as a given desk having stood the model up in its own systems. That is now an operational question rather than an eligibility one, but it is still worth asking before telling a borrower a re-pull will help them.
See who it’s for, how it works, and the common questions.
/programs/agency-qmTell me the property and the plan and I’ll come back with what’s eligible. Eligibility and terms vary by scenario.
Let’s find your pathGuidance changes and lenders adopt it on their own timelines. Check the primary source before relying on any of this for a live file.
Educational only. Not an offer, an approval, or advice on your specific file.
Next: Freddie Mac rewrites how assets convert into qualifying income
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