Freddie Mac issued Bulletin 2026-3 (Bulletin) announcing revisions to the Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide. Per the Bulletin, Freddie Mac:

• Added requirements when proceeds of a gift of equity exceed the amount needed for closing that the gift of equity may only be:
  • Used to pay off or pay down the borrower’s debt at closing when paid by the property seller to the creditor; and/or
  • Applied as a principal curtailment
• Removed the requirement for a mortgage to have a minimum indicator score of 720 when the subject property is a second home or investment property and each borrower individually, and all borrowers collectively, will be obligated on 7 to 10 financed properties, including the subject property and the borrower’s primary residence;
• Simplified the language for Loan Product Advisor mortgages to state that the reserves required to be verified by the lender is the amount indicated on the feedback certificate;
• Removed the broad requirement for a written analysis of the income and asset qualification sources and amounts and as a result, updates were made to the employed income requirements; however, the written analysis requirement remains for rental income, self-employed income, income while on temporary leave and income with certain characteristics;
• Updated income commencing after the Note Date to specify that a probationary period of time after employment starts (e.g., 90-day probationary, training or orientation period) is not considered a contingency of the employment offer;
• Update Exhibit 19 (Credit Fees) to rename “Refi Possible Mortgages without Appraisal Waiver (ACE) Credit for Credit Fee” to “Refi Possible Mortgages Appraisal Cost Offset Credit for Credit Fee”; and
• Updated the title of Topic 5600 to “Property Eligibility and Valuation” to better reflect the included requirements.

Revisions related to the added requirements when proceeds of a gift of equity exceed the amount needed for closing are for effective for mortgages with application received dates on or after June 3, 2026 (lenders, however, are encouraged to implement immediately). All other revisions are effective March 4, 2026.

Click to view the Freddie Mac Guide Bulletin 2026-03: https://www.tenaco.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Freddie-Mac-Guide-Bulletin-2026-03-03-04-26.pdf