Recently, a consumer reporting agency (CRA) informed lenders and industry members that it experienced a coding issue when it changed some of the technology to its legacy online model platform. As a result of the issue, the CRA advised that the miscalculation impacted approximately 12 percent of credit scores, although credit reports were not affected. 

In response, on June 1, Fannie Mae issued a notice regarding the coding error.  Fannie Mae reminded lenders “of their obligations under the Selling Guide to correct erroneous credit data, ensure the accuracy of the credit data submitted to Desktop Underwriter® (DU® ) at the time of loan sale, and to provide any corrected information to us.” Freddie Mac issued a similar notice advising lenders of their credit reporting and data correction responsibilities. Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are monitoring the situation and may issue additional guidance regarding the coding issue.