房利美与房地美引入新信用评分，搅动美国房贷市场
据《华尔街日报》报道，联邦住房金融局（FHFA）已指示房利美与房地美批准所有贷款机构在房贷审批中使用与 FICO 竞争的信用评分 VantageScore 4.0，该评分由 Equifax、Experian 与 TransUnion 三大征信机构合资开发。特朗普政府与贷款机构称，引入竞争将扩大合格借款人范围、压低借贷成本；全美最大的房贷机构 Rocket Mortgage 已将 VantageScore 定为首选评分，United Wholesale Mortgage 表示将同时提取两个评分、采用较高者，PennyMac 也已在全线业务启用新评分。
但分析师与房贷债券投资者提出质疑：两种评分模型被同等对待，可能使借款人在违约风险未相应降低的情况下获得更优惠的定价。据咨询机构 Milliman 统计，今年8月已有近40亿美元由房利美、房地美支持的房贷使用 VantageScore 发放，而今年4月这一数字仅为800万美元。在30年期房贷利率高企的背景下，这场评分改革正在重塑美国房贷市场格局。
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Embrace FICO Rival VantageScore, Shaking Up the Mortgage Market
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been directed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency to approve all lenders to use VantageScore 4.0, a credit score rivaling FICO, in mortgage underwriting, The Wall Street Journal reported. VantageScore was developed by a joint venture of the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The Trump administration and lenders say greater competition in credit scoring will expand the pool of qualified borrowers and lower borrowing costs. Rocket Mortgage, the nation's largest mortgage lender, has made VantageScore its preferred score; United Wholesale Mortgage says it will pull both scores and use the higher one; and PennyMac has deployed VantageScore across its businesses.
Analysts and mortgage-bond investors, however, question whether treating the two scoring models as equivalent could let borrowers obtain better pricing without a corresponding reduction in default risk. According to consulting firm Milliman, nearly $4 billion in Fannie- and Freddie-backed mortgages were originated using VantageScore in August, up from $8 million in April. With 30-year mortgage rates at elevated levels, the scoring shift is reshaping the U.S. mortgage market.
图片来源：美国郊区成片住宅航拍。Derek Jensen（Tysto）摄，公共领域，维基共享资源
