The Federal Housing Finance Agency wants you to report instances of mortgage fraud.
FHFA Director Bill Pulte in an X post Tuesday shared a new email address, fraudtips@fhfa.gov, for consumers to submit mortgage fraud tips. It's unclear who will investigate claims, and the FHFA didn't respond to a request for additional information Tuesday morning.
"We will be establishing a tip line where anyone and everyone can submit tips on anyone fraudulently filling out mortgage apps," wrote Pulte in a separate X post Monday evening.
The director has made targeting fraud a prominent focus of his agency, last week announcing the termination of over 100 Fannie Mac employees for an undisclosed scheme. Pulte echoes the Trump administration's stated goal to rid the government of fraud, waste and abuse, an effort that included slashing the FHFA's workforce by 25%, according to Pulte.
Instances of fraud in mortgage applications are not uncommon, and by some metrics are increasingly growing. According to a CoreLogic report last October, 1 in every 123 home loan applications had indications of fraud in the second quarter of 2024.
Mortgage defect rates also climbed in the first half of last year after a larger spike in the tail-end of the refinance boom, according to an Aces Quality Management report last winter. Defects however do not always represent mortgage fraud.
While the FHFA's Office of Inspector General probes mortgage fraud, the Department of Justice prosecutes those cases. In an announcement Tuesday related to a money laundering case, the FHFA OIG said it had worked alongside the Internal Revenue Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s Office of Inspector General.
Fannie Mae, overseen by the FHFA, earlier this year also acknowledged fraud that could cost the government-sponsored enterprise nine figures.
The GSE said it set aside $752 million for credit losses in its apartment complex lending business in part because of suspected mortgage fraud. Fannie said it was investigating additional transactions. Fellow GSE Freddie Mac has also raised concern over fraudulent loans.
Tuesday's tip line was the most recent announcement by Pulte in a social media blitz since his confirmation on March 21. In less than four weeks, Pulte has issued 12 orders for the regulator via X posts, in addition to reshuffling the GSEs' boards of directors.
