FHA Announces Approval of VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T for Mortgage Credit Evaluations

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) will permit the use of VantageScore 4.0 and FICO 10T as eligible credit scoring models for mortgage underwriting in the coming months.

HUD Secretary Scott Turner made the announcement during a media conference on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, emphasizing that the change will benefit creditworthy and trustworthy applicants while maintaining underwriting rigor.

Turner stated that the goal is to make homeownership more accessible and affordable without compromising standards, referencing lessons learned from the financial crisis.

He said, “I want to emphasize that this will benefit only applicants, again, that are creditworthy and trustworthy; we’ve been through a great financial crisis… So, This represents the rigor, it will stay in place, but we want to make it more available and more affordable.”

Simultaneously, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) launched a pilot program allowing the use of VantageScore 4.0 for loans delivered to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, with plans to consider FICO 10T for future use.

FHFA Director Bill Pulte said the initiative responds to lender concerns about rising credit scoring costs and aims to reduce expenses to as low as 99 cents per report through negotiations with FICO and VantageScore.

Pulte added that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now accessing modern credit scores that recognize on-time rent payments as a predictor of mortgage reliability, stating, “If you pay on time, you are more likely to pay your mortgage on time for decades.”

The FHFA noted that while the GSEs will continue using three-bureau “tri-merge” reports for now, the pilot marks a shift toward incorporating newer scoring models that reflect updated consumer financial behaviors.

Both agencies confirmed that the move aligns with broader efforts to modernize mortgage underwriting by incorporating predictive data from sources like rental history, which previous models did not fully capture.

FHFA had previously validated and approved FICO 10T and VantageScore 4.0 for use by the Enterprises on October 24, 2022, paving the way for their gradual adoption in government-backed lending programs.

The initiatives come amid ongoing pressure from lenders and industry groups to lower costs and increase competition among credit scoring providers, which have seen fees rise in recent years.

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