VanDyk Mortgage News: May 22, 2025

May 22, 2025

Find the recording of this newscast at the VDM Vault.

• Recent Cybersecurity Threat

In case you missed this morning’s email: VanDyk has recently been targeted by a new cybersecurity attack. This new attack vector involves a coordinated attempt to overwhelm an employee’s inbox with hundreds of unsolicited emails, newsletters, and password reset requests over an extended period.

Following this disruption, the attacker may attempt to contact the employee via Microsoft Teams, impersonating a member of the VanDyk IT Department. The message typically claims the need to adjust mail filters to stop the influx of SPAM. These impersonators have used various names and always present themselves under generic titles such as “IT Department” or similar. As part of the ruse, they may request to remotely access your computer using Windows Quick Assist in order to “resolve” the issue—this is a key tactic used to gain unauthorized access to your machine.

Please be alert for two key warning signs:

1. The Teams message originates from a generic group name rather than a specific, known team member.
2. The sender’s name is marked with “(External)” – indicating they are outside our organization.

Important Reminder:

VanDyk IT will never contact you via an external Teams account, and we will never use generic accounts to initiate communication. If you receive a suspicious message, please cross-check the sender’s name in the company intranet directory and, if in doubt, start a new message thread in Teams to verify the individual’s identity.

Your vigilance is vital to keeping our systems secure. If you receive a suspicious message or experience anything unusual, report it immediately to ITHelpDesk@vandykmortgage.com and don’t forget to utilize the Report Phish or SPAM button within Outlook.

• Plaza Home Mortgage – Renovation

Just a reminder that Plaza’s 203k and Homestyle products are available in-house now! Find resources on these loans here in Seafile. As a reminder, we require training to be completed prior to originating these renovation loans. Reach out to Production Support to get this training assigned in ADP if you haven’t already completed.

• Inactivity Policy for Commissioned Employees

Please see the Inactivity Policy, which establishes the requirement for consistent paid activity to maintain active employment status.

• Appraisals Sent to Borrower

Great news: ValueLink will now send a copy of the appraisal to the borrower automatically within 3 days of completion.

• Appraiser/LO Communication

With our recent transition from our internal Appraisal Management System (AMS) to Valligent, we have experienced an increase in reports indicating direct communication between Loan Officers and appraisers.

Please be reminded that such communication is a direct violation of the Appraiser Independence Requirements (AIR). These regulations exist to protect the integrity of the appraisal process, and non-compliance can carry serious consequences for both the loan and the organization.

In our discussions with Valligent, it has been made clear that any indication of direct contact between a Loan Officer and an appraiser will necessitate the ordering of a brand-new appraisal. This not only creates additional costs but may also result in significant delays to loan closings.

To prevent disruption, it is critical that all communication with appraisers is routed through the proper channels. If you have questions about how to facilitate appraiser contact, please reach out to appraisals@vandykmortgage.com.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and for your commitment to compliance.

• Loan Status Updates: Withdrawals/Denials

In case you didn’t know: you can update your loan status from the “Update Loan Status” button on the Borrower Summary – VDMC form.  Here are some additional reminders and best practices:

• • A loan cannot be withdrawn based on communication from anyone but the borrower. In addition, we must wait 30 days to withdraw.
  • Loans cannot be denied without income documentation and a review by our Underwriting management team. If a loan hasn’t been sent to underwriting or is NOT under contract, best practice is to withdraw instead of denying.
• Product Matrix Updates

We have made updates to several of our matrices!  Minimum FICO requirements for FHA Streamlines as well as VA IRRRLs has been lifted and we have expanded debt to income ratios for VA Manual UWs!  Check out all of the exciting updates here.

• Coming Soon: Update to Sarma Credit Ordering

For those who use Sarma for credit, soon we will be launching a new interface in Encompass for credit orders. Watch your inbox for a training invitation!

• In Case You Missed It

Here’s a rundown of communications that we’ve sent since the last News:

• • USDA Manufactured: For the first time ever, USDA financing is now available for existing manufactured homes – not just new ones!  And it’s available in all states where the property meets USDA eligibility requirements. See more details in the email sent Wednesday, May 7.
  • Virtual Inspections: Valligent provides a Virtual Inspection solution for these products, which is approved for use with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA financing. These virtual options offer a faster turnaround time and are available at a lower cost compared to the traditional 1004D and FEMA inspections. These can be ordered through Valuelink.
• Exciting Growth Ahead – Please Welcome Patrick Sheedy!

We’re thrilled to share that BIG things are coming over the next few months! We’re in the early stages of bringing Non-QM Bank Statement and DSCR products in-house — a major step forward for our growth and capabilities.

As part of this initiative, we’re excited to welcome Patrick Sheedy to the team! Patrick brings many years of expertise in the Non-QM space and will play a key role in building out a successful path forward.

While we’re still a bit away from a full launch, we wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you to Patrick now so you can begin putting a name to a face and start building those important relationships.

Stay tuned — more updates to come as we continue building for the future!

• New Hires and Rehires: Welcome, and Welcome Back!

Agency Updates

Freddie Mac

Effective with LPA submissions on and after May 18, 2025, the 2025 Area Median Income (AMI) limits will apply.  In addition, the following tools and applications will be updated to reflect the updated limits:

• Home Possible^® Income & Property Eligibility tool(opens in new window)
• Refi Possible^® Income & Eligibility tool(opens in new window)
• Area Median Income and Property Eligibility tool(opens in new window)
• Income Limits and Affordable Check APIs

Freddie Mac also made updates to their selling guide – highlights below.

Employed Income:

• Base non-fluctuating employment earnings updates: 

Freddie Mac has made the following updates related to non-exempt (hourly) earnings:

• • Minor fluctuations in hours: language updated to add specificity to the intent of the existing requirements. Minor variations in base hours on paystubs (e.g., Borrower clocked out a few minutes early) are acceptable and may be treated as base non-fluctuating earnings when the variation is no more than an hour per week. Minor variations do not automatically render the base earnings as fluctuating if the historical earnings support the level of pay.
  • Minimum required hours exception for primary employment: requirements added for Borrowers with base earnings that fluctuate but have a position with a minimum number of required hours. The earnings may be considered non-fluctuating, and the minimum required hours are acceptable to use for gross pay if the following requirements are met:
    • Written documentation from the employer confirming the minimum required hours (i.e., written verification of employment, offer letter or equivalent documentation)
    • The documented minimum required hours must be supported by year-to-date (YTD) income and prior year, as applicable. Only the minimum required hours may be considered non-fluctuating. The requirements for fluctuating employment earnings apply to any additional hours used to qualify the Borrower.

• Base fluctuating hourly employment earnings – calculation method updates

Freddie Mac has made the following updates related to calculation methods:

• • Specified that the base fluctuating hourly earnings must be averaged over the most recent year(s) and YTD income, with examples
  • Added exception language for when a Seller may average using less than the most recent year(s) and YTD income, with examples

Pension Income:

When Internal Revenue Service Form 1099 is used to document current receipt and verifies income type and source, for existing and established pension income, the age of documentation requirements in Section 5102.4 do not apply.

Tax-Exempt Status of Child Support Income:

Freddie Mac is no longer requiring that Child Support Income be documented as Tax-Exempt.

Fannie Mae

As with Freddie Mac AMI 2025 Limits being updated effective May 18, 2025, Fannie Mae is making a simultaneous update for DU Casefiles created on and after May 18, 2025.  DU Casefiles created before this date will continue to observe the 2024 AMI Limits.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also aligning updates regarding Interested party contributions and lender incentives – see Fannie Mae SEL-2025-3 for details.

IPCs:

• Clearer definitions of IPCs.
• A new list of items that are not subject to maximum financing concessions (formerly “IPC limits”).
• Clarified a realtor rebate, not applied to the transaction (for example, not used towards closing costs), must be treated as a sales concession, regardless of when the rebate is provided.

Lender Incentives:

• Clarified arrangements subject to the lender incentive policy include cash, cash-like gifts, or items of value which may be provided directly by a lender to a borrower or through a third-party on behalf of the lender.
• Revised the requirement that when a lender who is, or is affiliated with, an interested party, provides an incentive, it must be treated as a sales concession.

*  *  *

Upcoming Events and Reminders

Miss a training? You’ll find our monthly newscast and Iron Sharpens Iron recordings in the VDM Vault. Department-specific trainings are shared in their respective Seafile folders.

Don’t forget: you can find invitations on our shared calendar under What’s Happening at VDMC.net (all times posted on the What’s Happening calendar are EST)

• Deal Desk: Every Tuesday @ 1:30pm Eastern
• Origination Nation: Every Monday and Thursday @ 12:00pm Eastern
• VanDyk Mortgage Newscast: Wednesday, May 14 @ 1:00pm Eastern
• Iron Sharpens Iron: Tuesday, May 20 @ 11am Eastern
• Production Roundtable: Wednesday, May 21 @ 2:00pm Eastern

Upcoming USDA Training: USDA will be hosting a training session all about GUS. Topics include: understanding GUS underwriting recommendations, uploading required documentation, reviewing common GUS error messages, and contacting their help desk. Don’t miss this one! Thursday, June 12 at 2pm Eastern/11am Pacific. Register here.

Broker Loan Process: Updated

As a reminder, brokered loans must be moved to the Docs Rcvd (BKD) milestone in order to notify the Production Support team that the loan has closed and a QC review is needed.

To accommodate increased brokered loan volume, the Broker Loan Process has been updated to specify that loans must be submitted for QC review 72 hours prior to payroll cutoff in order to be paid within the current pay period.  Please refer to the Payroll Calendar in the HR Seafile for cutoff dates (in yellow).

*  *  *

AllRegs Reminder

With our access to AllRegs restored, we now have access to investor libraries including Chase, Lakeview, Citi, Penny Mac, Redwood Trust, Truist, and our MI partners. Check them out!

*  *  *