Your credit history may be the same. A different approved scoring model could change your mortgage options—and potentially what you pay.

By Lance Morgan | Senior Loan Officer | NMLS #742281
Seattle Wholesale Mortgage, powered by OC Home Loans Inc. NMLS #184
Updated November 2, 2026

You check your credit. You compare mortgage rates. You figure out your down payment and what monthly payment feels comfortable.

But there is another question worth asking before accepting a mortgage quote:

Is the lender using the credit scoring model that gives you the strongest qualifying result?

For decades, Classic FICO was the required credit scoring model, when scores were available, for mortgages delivered to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Now approved lenders can also use VantageScore 4.0 for eligible loans under the agencies’ requirements. www.fhfa.gov

That change creates another opportunity to evaluate your financing.

For some borrowers, it could mean a usable credit score where a traditional model could not generate one. For others, it could mean a more favorable score that improves mortgage pricing or mortgage insurance costs.

I work with lenders that are actively using VantageScore 4.0, including United Wholesale Mortgage. My job is to find out whether that creates an advantage for you—and show you the numbers.

The opportunity to save is real. Whether you benefit depends on your credit profile, loan program and complete financing offer.

Why this is such a significant change

A credit score can influence mortgage eligibility and pricing. Yet borrowers have historically had little reason to ask which scoring model their lender uses.

You might compare three mortgage companies without realizing that all three could be evaluating your credit through the same Classic FICO framework.

Now there is another approved option for eligible conventional mortgages.

That does not mean FICO has disappeared or that VantageScore is better for everyone. It means there is another way to evaluate credit—and a reason to ask whether your lender can use it.

My view is simple: when a financing option could make a meaningful difference, it deserves a careful comparison.

The change is already appearing in mortgage production

Freddie Mac reported that VantageScore 4.0 represented 6% of its single-family new business activity’s credit score pricing assessment during the third quarter of 2026, compared with 94% for Classic FICO. www.sec.gov

Fannie Mae reported a similar approximately 6% category, although its disclosure combines loans delivered with VantageScore 4.0 and loans for which FICO scores were unavailable. That distinction matters: its figure is not a standalone VantageScore market share percentage. www.fanniemae.com

For borrowers, the practical takeaway is that this is already being used in actual mortgage lending.

The question is whether it can improve your transaction.

First, you have more than one credit score

“My credit app shows a higher score.”

I hear this from borrowers, and there is a reasonable explanation.

Your credit report contains information about your accounts, balances and payment history. A scoring model evaluates that information and generates a number.

Different models can produce different numbers. Information reported to Equifax, Experian and TransUnion can also differ.

Even FICO has multiple versions. Classic mortgage FICO commonly refers to FICO Scores 2, 5 and 4. A score displayed by your bank, credit card company or monitoring service may use another model. www.myfico.com

That is why the score you see on your phone may differ from the score a mortgage lender obtains.

VantageScore 4.0 provides another method of evaluating your reported credit information. It does not rewrite your credit history.

How VantageScore 4.0 differs from Classic FICO

The useful comparison is between these specific models. FICO continues to develop newer models, so describing every FICO score as old technology would be inaccurate.

VantageScore’s published materials describe these features. They do not establish that every borrower will receive a higher score or a better mortgage offer. cdn.vantagescore.com

Your financial direction can matter

Imagine two borrowers with similar credit card balances today.

One has steadily paid those balances down. The other has steadily added debt.

Their current balances may look similar, but their recent financial patterns are different.

VantageScore 4.0 incorporates trended credit data—information about how certain credit behaviors change over time. Experian describes the model as using 24 months of trended information, including changes in balances, credit utilization and payments. Credit utilization means how much of your available revolving credit you are using. www.experian.com

This does not mean Classic FICO ignores payment history. It means VantageScore 4.0 adds another way to evaluate the direction of certain credit behaviors.

For borrowers who have been consistently reducing debt, that distinction is worth investigating.

Approximately 33 million more adults can be scored

According to VantageScore, its 4.0 model can score approximately 94% of U.S. adults and approximately 33 million more consumers than conventional scoring models. These are the company’s published estimates about scoring coverage. vantagescore.com

Consider someone who rarely borrows, has recently started building credit or has an older credit history with little recent activity.

A conventional model may not have the qualifying information it needs to generate a score. That does not, by itself, establish whether the person could responsibly manage a mortgage.

Expanding who can receive a score gives lenders another way to evaluate those consumers.

A usable score creates an opportunity for evaluation. It does not guarantee financing.

Income, existing debts, assets, property eligibility and applicable underwriting requirements still matter.

What machine learning means here

VantageScore says machine learning was used during model development to identify patterns in credit information, including information associated with consumers who have limited credit histories. vantagescore.com

For borrowers, the useful point is that newer analytical methods can help evaluate information differently.

This does not mean an AI system automatically approves your mortgage. The score remains one part of a broader lending decision.

You may also see VantageScore publish percentage “lift” figures. Those are model-performance claims, not promised percentage increases in your credit score, approval odds or savings.

Rent and household payments may help—when they are reported

Many people have paid rent, electricity and phone bills responsibly for years without building an extensive traditional credit history.

VantageScore 4.0 can consider qualifying rental, utility and telecommunications information when it is present in the consumer’s credit file. www.vantagescore.com

The reporting requirement matters.

Paying rent on time does not automatically mean those payments appear in your credit report. Before assuming they will help, we need to understand what information is actually available.

The opportunity is broader recognition of qualifying payment history.

Medical collections receive different treatment

VantageScore states that medical collections are excluded from its VantageScore 4.0 calculation. www.vantagescore.com

For someone whose credit file includes medical collections, that makes the comparison particularly relevant.

Excluding an item from a scoring calculation does not erase the underlying debt or eliminate a lender’s separate requirements. It can, however, change how that information affects the score being evaluated.

UWM now obtains both models and selects the strongest qualifying score

United Wholesale Mortgage is one of the wholesale lenders I work with.

On October 6, 2026, UWM announced that it obtains both FICO and VantageScore 4.0 on all credit pulls and automatically selects the strongest qualifying score, subject to applicable requirements.

UWM also said its early research indicated that obtaining all available scores could save many borrowers thousands. That is a lender-reported finding, rather than a guaranteed result for your loan. www.uwm.com

This gives us a concrete opportunity to investigate whether another approved model improves your position.

Automatic score selection is useful. My responsibility still includes reviewing the complete financing offer.

UWM also removed its former 20-point VantageScore adjustment

UWM eliminated the 20-point downward adjustment it previously applied to VantageScore, effective for new rate locks beginning September 30, 2026. www.uwm.com

Here is a simplified illustration of that change:

This illustrates the removed adjustment only. The score applicable to a mortgage remains subject to borrower-selection, loan and underwriting requirements.

Removing the adjustment does not increase the score in your credit file. It removes a deduction that previously applied when UWM used the score.

For an eligible borrower near a pricing threshold, that difference could matter.

Where meaningful savings could come from

Conventional mortgage pricing can include loan-level price adjustments, or LLPAs. These are pricing adjustments based on loan characteristics, including the applicable credit score and the loan amount relative to the property’s value.

Fannie Mae’s current pricing matrix includes credit score bands. Moving into a different band may change the adjustment, although waivers and other loan features can affect the result. singlefamily.fanniemae.com

Depending on the lender’s complete offer, improved pricing could appear as:

• Lower upfront costs at a comparable interest rate.

• A more favorable rate at comparable upfront costs.

• More lender credit at a comparable rate.

Mortgage insurance may create another opportunity, depending on insurer acceptance and the applicable loan requirements.

These are separate items to compare. A different score alone does not tell us your final savings.

There have already been reported borrower benefits

In September 2026, HousingWire described an example shared by UWM CEO Mat Ishbia in which using VantageScore improved a borrower’s loan-level pricing adjustment and reduced mortgage insurance by more than $100 per month.

That example occurred under the earlier framework that included the 20-point adjustment. It was another broker’s reported transaction, not a Seattle Wholesale Mortgage client result or a promise of similar savings. www.housingwire.com

It demonstrates why this deserves attention.

The benefit may extend beyond getting a different score. It may affect actual financing costs.

Why access to the right lenders matters

Agency acceptance and lender implementation are different things.

A model can be permitted without every lender choosing to offer it. Adoption remains optional under the current agency framework. www.fhfa.gov

I work with lenders that are putting this option into practice.

That fits the way I approach financing: understand your situation, investigate available choices and put clear numbers in front of you.

Sometimes VantageScore may create a substantial advantage. Sometimes Classic FICO and another lender’s offer will remain the stronger choice.

You deserve that comparison either way.

Who should ask about VantageScore 4.0?

It deserves particular attention if you have limited or dormant credit, medical collections, or a score near a mortgage pricing threshold.

It may also be worth another conversation if you recently received an expensive mortgage quote or were told credit prevented you from qualifying.

Those situations do not establish that VantageScore will solve the problem. They are reasons to investigate before assuming the earlier answer is the only answer.

For Realtor partners, this may also be a reason to revisit buyers who stepped back because of credit concerns. A fresh review can establish whether another eligible option is available.

There are rules around using the models

You cannot simply combine whichever numbers look most favorable.

Under Fannie Mae’s current implementation, the same scoring model must be used for all borrowers on a loan, and VantageScore 4.0 must be requested from all three credit bureaus. Fannie Mae also currently excludes manually underwritten loans from its VantageScore implementation. singlefamily.fanniemae.com

A score displayed in an app is not automatically the score a mortgage lender can use.

The model version, reported information, timing and program requirements all need to line up.

A stronger score still needs to produce a better overall loan

I do not want a client choosing financing simply because one score is higher.

The comparison needs to include the rate, points, lender charges, credits, mortgage insurance, cash to close and expected time in the home.

The financing also needs to fit the property and closing timeline.

After more than 25 years in mortgage lending, I know that buyers want clear answers:

Can I make this home happen? What will it cost? Is someone checking my options carefully?

That is where I focus.

VantageScore 4.0 gives us another option worth checking. For some borrowers, it may create meaningful savings or another path toward financing.

I work with lenders using it. Let’s find out whether it makes a difference for you.

Have Lance review your mortgage options.

Lance Morgan | Senior Loan Officer | NMLS #742281
Seattle Wholesale Mortgage
A DBA of OC Home Loans Inc. | NMLS #1842513
425-478-6412
SeattleWholesaleMortgage.com
Equal Housing Opportunity

Availability depends on the lender, loan program and applicable requirements. VantageScore 4.0 scores may be higher or lower than Classic FICO scores. A different or higher score does not guarantee approval, lower pricing or savings. Historical examples describe specific reported transactions; individual results vary. Personalized pricing and savings comparisons are estimates. Official loan figures are provided on the Loan Estimate. Information is current as of November 2, 2026.