Lender Solicitation for Refinancing
With the exception of certain Refi Plus and DU Refi Plus mortgage loans, lenders may not specifically target Fannie Mae borrowers for offers to refinance. Lenders may advertise refinancing opportunities generally, or to a specific type of mortgage (for example, ARMs or FHA mortgages).
Lenders may not treat mortgages they hold in their own portfolios and those sold to another investor or Fannie Mae as separate classes of mortgages for purposes of promoting refinancing.
Lenders may not, as a means of making a mortgage loan eligible for repurchase from an MBS pool, encourage a borrower to refrain from making payments on his or her mortgage loan.
Note: See B5-5.2-01, DU Refi Plus and Refi Plus Eligibility for additional information regarding permissible solicitation practices for Refi Plus and DU Refi Plus mortgage loans.
Prearranged Refinancing Agreements
A lender may not deliver a mortgage to Fannie Mae if the lender (or any affiliate or thirdparty originator) and the borrower have entered into an arrangement for special terms (such as reduced fees) for a future refinance of the mortgage. If the lender believes that there might be such a refinance agreement, the lender should contact its lead Fannie Mae regional office (see E-1-03, List of Contacts) to determine whether the mortgage is eligible for delivery.
Agreements to Advance Borrower Payments
Refinancing arrangements that call for the lender to advance a number of payments on the borrower’s behalf and then to refinance the mortgage once the agreed-upon payments have been advanced are not permitted.