How to Become an FHA-Approved Lender

Effective June 20, 2012, all lenders seeking new FHA approval must submit their application package through the online application site. 

FHA will only accept paper applications postmarked with a date prior to June 20, 2012. Paper application packages postmarked after that date will be returned to applicants with instructions on how to apply online.

Lenders who are currently preparing application packages or plan to apply in the near future may contact the FHA Resource Center with questions at answers@hud.gov and 1-800-225-5342. Please include the words “New Applicant” in the subject line and include a contact person and phone number in the email body so that a Lender Approval representative may contact you.

There are four types of FHA lender approval:

Nonsupervised Mortgagee: Correspondent lenders and mortgage lenders should apply for this type of approval if they want to perform the following lender functions: origination, underwriting, purchasing, holding, servicing, and the selling of FHA insured mortgages.

Supervised Mortgagee: Banks, savings banks, and credit unions should apply for this type of approval if they want to perform the following lender functions: origination, underwriting, purchasing, holding, servicing, and the selling of FHA insured mortgages.

Government Mortgagee: Federal, State, local government agencies, and public or state housing authorities should apply for this type of approval if they want to perform the following lender functions: origination, underwriting, purchasing, holding, servicing, and the selling of FHA insured mortgages.

Investing Mortgagee: Any entity that wants to perform the following lender functions: servicing, purchasing, holding, and the selling of FHA insured mortgages should apply for this type of approval. This mortgagee type cannot originate or fund FHA loans.