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CHOICEHome® FAQ

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  1. What is CHOICEHome®?
    CHOICEHome is our affordable mortgage offering that provides conventional site-built financing for manufactured homes that are titled as real property, built to the HUD Code, and have features of site-built homes. A manufactured home is certified as a CHOICEHome and eligible for CHOICEHome financing if it meets certain specifications.
  2. What are the current CHOICEHome specifications?
    These are the current specifications:
    • Property type: Multi-section home with a minimum of 1,000 square feet of living area
    • Higher roof pitch: Minimum 4/12 (not applicable for triple wide or greater)
    • Expanded exterior features: Must include two of the following three selections (materials and finishes of garage/carport must be equivalent to the primary structure’s):
      • Dormer
      • Attached/Detached garage/carport
      • Covered porch (minimum 72 square feet)
    • Eaves: Must include front and rear roof eaves that are 4" or greater
    • Foundation: Must meet HUD’s Permanent Foundation Guide for Manufactured Housing, be engineer designed and certified, include a perimeter mortared masonry blocking wall, and include a low-profile/residential floor elevation design not to exceed 30” installation
     
    Note: The elevation requirement is an installation standard. Site topography or other considerations may affect actual placement and will not disqualify the property from its CHOICEHome classification
  3. What are the CHOICEHome occupancy requirements?

    CHOICEHome must be the borrowers' primary residence.

  4. What does CHOICEHome offer lenders?
    With CHOICEHome, lenders gain:
    • Better alignment of loan terms between site-built and manufactured homes
    • Efficiency in the loan origination process
    • Technical expertise on loan underwriting and property valuation
    • Ability to track overall loan performance
    • Opportunities to promote manufactured homes as a high-quality, affordable housing option and to enable more people to achieve sustainable homeownership in a tight housing market
  5. Is training available for appraisers on CHOICEHome?

    Yes. We worked with the Appraisal Institute to develop training for appraisers and appraisal management companies on evaluating manufactured housing, including CHOICEHome. Training is offered on a state-by-state basis on the Appraisal Institute’s virtual platform and in-person classes. Visit the Appraisal Institute website for additional details.

  6. Is a mortgage secured by a certified CHOICEHome eligible for sale to Freddie Mac as a construction conversion loan?
    Yes. CHOICEHome mortgages are eligible for sale to Freddie Mac as construction conversion mortgages, including those documented with integrated documentation (i.e., single closing), provided they meet the Guide requirements for both offerings.
  7. Is a community land trust (CLT) mortgage secured by a CHOICEHome eligible for sale to Freddie Mac?
    Yes. To provide borrowers with more affordable housing options, we allow lenders to sell CLT mortgages secured by CHOICEHome-certified manufactured homes.
  8. How will lenders and appraisers know whether the home is CHOICEHome certified?

    Manufacturers that build homes to CHOICEHome specifications will place a CHOICEHome label next to the HUD data plate.

  9. Can CHOICEHome be used with fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgages?

    Yes. It can be used with fixed-rate mortgages and 5/6-Month, 7/6-Month or 10/6-Month  ARMs.

  10. What is the CHOICEHome maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratio?
    CHOICEHome LTV can be up to 97% with a Home Possible® and HomeOneSM mortgage.
    Like a site-built home, a CHOICEHome can be financed with a down payment as low as 3%.
  11. How is a certified CHOICEHome financed like a site-built home?

    A CHOICEHome is eligible for other Freddie Mac products, including Home Possible®, HomeOneSM, and Construction Conversion mortgages, resulting in higher LTV ratios and lower down payment options for the borrower.

  12. Will Freddie Mac purchase Desktop Underwriter® (DU) loans or MH Advantage® loans under the CHOICEHome offering?
    No. We will not purchase loans assessed by DU or MH Advantage loans under the CHOICEHome offering. CHOICEHome loans must be Loan Product Advisor® Accept mortgages.
  13. What are CHOICEHome financing options?
    A CHOICEHome-certified home is eligible for as little as 3 percent minimum down payment for Freddie Mac Home® Possible borrowers and Freddie Mac HomeOneSM first-time homebuyers. These homes can also be financed using our construction conversion mortgages.
  14. How is a CHOICEHome property appraised?

    They are appraised like site-built homes, with appraisals completed on the Manufactured Home Appraisal Report (Form 70B) by allowing the use of site-built homes as comparable sales when no CHOICEHome comparable sales are available.