How Do I Become a Ginnie Mae Issuer?

Issuers of Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities (MBS) make a significant contribution to the expansion of affordable housing opportunities in America. Applicants must therefore demonstrate that they have the organizational, financial, procedural, quality control, and other necessary characteristics that will qualify them to participate in the program.

The Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities guide is an invaluable resource when applying for issuer status. In it you will find discussions about eligibility requirements, issuer responsibilities, the application process as well as the applications themselves.

Eligibility requirements are the same for both the Ginnie Mae I and Ginnie Mae II MBS programs. One application qualifies applicants to issue securities under both programs, except those applying to issue only multifamily securities.

Eligibility Requirements

Ginnie Mae requires its issuers to meet certain criteria, as follows:

• Issuers must be approved FHA mortgagees in good standing. A mortgagee approved only as an FHA loan correspondent is not eligible to be a Ginnie Mae issuer. Issuers may apply for FHA mortgagee approval and Ginnie Mae issuer status at the same time.
• Issuers must possess demonstrated experience and management capacity in the underwriting, origination, and servicing of mortgage loans.
• Issuers must have fidelity bond and a "mortgagee errors and omissions" policy in effect.
• Issuers must have a quality control plan in place for underwriting, originating, and servicing mortgage loans as well as for secondary marketing.
• For the single-family, issuers must have a minimum net worth of $2,500,000. For HMBS programs, issuers must have a minimum net worth of $5,000,000. For the multifamily program, issuers must have a minimum net worth of $1,000,000. For the manufactured housing program, issuers must have a minimum net worth of $10,000,000.

Issuer Responsibilities

Issuer responsibilities include the following:

• Acquiring or originating eligible mortgages and forming eligible pools or loan packages.
• Establishing and maintaining proper P&I, escrow custodial, and other pertinent accounts, payments and funds. Chapter 16 (PDF) of the Ginnie Mae MBS Guide contains details about the various accounts.
• Obtaining and working with an eligible document custodian. Chapter 13 (PDF) of the Ginnie Mae MBS Guide contains information about the documents that must be placed with a document custodian.
• Marketing or holding the securities backed by the pool or loan package.
• Servicing the mortgages in the pool or loan package or contracting with a service bureau to service them.
• Administering the outstanding securities:
  Ginnie Mae I MBS Program - For certificated securities, the issuer must make timely payment
  of all amounts due to security holders and the guaranty fee due to Ginnie Mae. For book-entry
  securities, the issuer must make funds available to the Central Payment and Transfer Agent
  central P&I account for all amounts due to the security holders and the guaranty fee due to
  Ginnie Mae.
  
  Ginnie Mae II MBS Program - The issuer must make funds available to the Central Payment
  and Transfer Agent in the central P&I account for all amounts due to security holders and the
  guaranty fee due to Ginnie Mae.
  
  
  Under both programs, the issuer must use its own resources to cover shortfalls in amounts due to security holders or to Ginnie Mae resulting from insufficient collections on the mortgage collateral.
• Submitting required monthly, quarterly, and other reports and certifications to Ginnie Mae. See Chapter 17 (PDF) of the Ginnie Mae MBS Guide for more information about the reports and certifications.

The Application Process

All applicants will need to submit the information and forms listed in the Ginnie Mae Issuer Applicant Checklist. Please refer to Chapter 7 (PDF) of the Ginnie Mae MBS Guide for full details and descriptions of additional documentation that may be required.

For More Information:

New Issuer applications require overnight delivery to the following address:

Ginnie Mae
Attn: Enterprise Risk
550 12th Street, S.W., 3rd Floor
Washington, DC 20024

For more information about how to become a Ginnie Mae Issuer or the status of your submitted application, please contact Michael R. Nixon at 202-475-4941 or Karen D. Sharp at 202-475-7150.