FHFA Announces Mandatory Use of SCIF

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) on May 3rd, 2022, announced that new loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (GSEs) will require lenders to use the Supplemental Consumer Information Form (SCIF) with application dates on or after March 1, 2023. According to the announcement, the purpose of the SCIF is to help industry professionals better understand and serve borrowers’ needs throughout the home buying process.

Formerly called the Voluntary Consumer Information Form (VCIF), the updated document will facilitate the collection of borrower information with standardized questions about whether they’ve received home ownership education, housing counseling, and most importantly, their language preference. The changes will require lenders to present the SCIF questions to borrowers and report any data collected from the SCIF to the GSEs