www.hudclips.org U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Washington, D.C. 20410-8000 September 17, 1992 OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HOUSING-FEDERAL HOUSING COMMISSIONER Mortgagee Letter 92-31 TO: ALL APPROVED MORTGAGEES AND HUD 312 LPAs SUBJECT: Expansion of the Credit Alert Interactive Voice Response System (CAIVRS) CAIVRS is a system which enables both the Government and participating lenders to receive an early warning that a potential borrower for a loan to be guaranteed by the Federal Government has defaulted on a similar loan in the past. Applicants for HUD/FHA -insured mortgages that have defaulted on Title I, Title II, and Section 312 loans are not eligible for insured mortgages unless the default was caused by extenuating circumstances as provided in Mortgage Credit Handbook 4155.1 Rev. 4, paragraph 2-4C. The Department now intends to expand the CAIVRS database by including default data on guaranteed loans issued by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Small Business Administration (SBA), Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), and Department of Education (ED). Because it will soon include default information on Single Family FHA insured loans (Title II), Home Improvement and Mobile Home insured loans (Title I), Section 312 loans, USDA/FmHA loans, SBA loans, DVA loans, and ED loans, the method to access CAIVRS and the messages lenders will receive from CAIVRS are being modified. This letter provides lenders with revised instructions on how to access CAIVRS (see Enclosure I). Enclosure II identifies the point of contact for any questions you may have regarding default information for a specific program area. If there are any additional questions on this Mortgagee Letter, please contact the Control and Analysis Division staff, attention, Mary Felton, the overall project coordinator for CAIVRS. Mary can be reached on (202) 708-4256, or facsimile number (202) 708-3698. Very sincerely yours, Arthur J. Hill Assistant Secretary for Housing - Federal Housing Commissioner Enclosures _____________________________________________________________________ ENCLOSURE I CAIVRS PROCEDURE The interactive voice response function provides lenders with the ability to use a touch-tone telephone to access CAIVRS for instant voice response of client credit information. The telephone number for CAIVRS is 703-391-1400, and its hours of operation are Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Please note that this is not a toll-free number and that a touch-tone telephone must be used. CAIVRS operates in the following manner: 1. The incoming call will be answered and the System will recite this salutation message: "Welcome to the HUD voice response system. To access the Credit Alert System, press 1. To access the Line of Credit Control System, press 2. If you have completed your call, push Zero. Thank you." 2. Enter 1. The system will respond: "You have reached the HUD credit alert system. Please enter your credit alert access code and then press pound." Enter your Lender Identification Number. NOTE: The CAIVRS system will only allow one second attempt to enter a access identification number. If a valid access ID is not entered on the second try, the session will be terminated. 3. The system will then determine which type(s) of loans the caller is authorized to process. If the caller is authorized to process only one kind of loan, the system will by-pass the next step. If the caller is authorized to process more than one type of loan, CAIVRS will, depending upon the types of loans the caller's I.D. is authorized to process, prompt the caller to respond to two or more of the following prompts: "If you are processing a HUD Title I loan, press 1, or if you are processing a FHA Single Family mortgage loan, press 2, or if you are processing a HUD 312 LPA, press 3, or if _____________________________________________________________________ you are processing a Veterans Affairs loan, press 4, or if you are processing a Farmers Home Insured loan, press 5, or if you are processing a Rural Development Administration loan, press 6, or if you are processing a Education loan, press 7, or if you are processing a Small Business Administration loan, press 9, and then press POUND." 4. The system will respond: "Please now enter applicant's Social Security Number or Tax Identification Number." The System will receive the nine digits entered by the lender and ask for verification with the message, "You have entered SSNSSNSSN, please enter 'Y' if this is correct, or 'N' if not correct." "Y" if correct, otherwise enter "N" and re-enter SSN. 5. If the social security number is found to be that of a borrower who has a claim, foreclosure or default under HUD Title I, HUD Title II, HUD Section 312 loan, USDA/FmHA loan, or SBA loan, or DVA loans, or ED loans, the System will read all case codes to determine which of the following messages to recite: o "THERE IS A FORECLOSURE ON THIS BORROWER." o "THERE IS A CLAIM ON THIS BORROWER." o "THERE IS A DEFAULT ON THIS BORROWER." o "THERE ARE MULTIPLE CASES FOR THIS BORROWER." The System will then recite the HUD/FHA Title I, HUD/FHA Title II, HUD Section 312, DVA, USDA/FmHA, SBA, or ED case numbers on which these claims, foreclosures, or defaults have occurred, using the following format for messages, as appropriate: o "HUD TITLE I CLAIM nnn nnn nnn." o "HUD TITLE II CLAIM nnn nnn nnn." o "HUD TITLE II DEFAULT nnn nnn nnn." o "HUD 312 DEFAULT nnn nnn nnnn." o "HUD 312 FORECLOSURE nnn nnn nnnn." o "DVA DEFAULT nnn nnn nnn." o "USDA/FmHA DEFAULT nnn nnn nnn." o "ED DEFAULT nnn nnn nnn." o "SBA DEFAULT nnn nnn nnn." The number will be spoken slowly to facilitate recording by the caller. If no match occurs, the System will recite the message, "There are no claims, foreclosures or defaults for this borrower." _____________________________________________________________________ 6. The System will then generate a Credit Alert Response Code and will recite the message, "Credit Alert Response Code is . . . . . . . . " This response code is maintained in the automated system to specifically identify a particular inquiry. The response code should be retained by the caller for the same purpose. 7. If the caller is authorized to process only one type of loan, CAIVRS will request the caller to respond to one of the following prompts: "If you would like the access information repeated, press 1, or if you would like to enter another applicant for the same type of loan, press 2," (the process is repeated, starting with item #4). 8. If the caller is authorized to process more than one type of loan, CAIVRS will then request the caller to respond to one of the following prompts: "If you would like the access information repeated, press 1, or if you would like to enter another applicant number for the same type of loan press 2, or for a different type of loan press 3," (the process is repeated, starting with either item #3 or item #4). 9. The System will now instruct the caller: "To return to the main menu press ZERO. If call completed, you may hang up now. Thank you for using the HUD voice response system." The information provided by CAIVRS is for the lenders and the borrowers use only. Any other use is unauthorized. The System is to be used only by those persons who have responsibility for screening applicants for credit worthiness. The social security numbers of all applicants must be entered into CAIVRS (except for the transactions set forth in paragraph 2-4C of HUD Handbook 4155.1 Revision 4) to see if there is a default or claim against any of them. During the face-to-face interview lenders should obtain information from the borrower(s) on any current or prior HUD insured Title I, Section 312 loans, HUD Title II mortgages, DVA loans, USDA/FmHA loans, or ED loans, or SBA loans. _____________________________________________________________________ ENCLOSURE II If an applicant's social security number is matched against a default, foreclosure, or claim in CAIVRS and the applicant disputes the accuracy of the information, the lender should contact: 1. HUD Title I Anne Baird-Bridges Department of Housing and Urban Development Debt Servicing Branch, Room 9166 451 7th Street, SW Washington, DC 20410 Telephone: 202-708-3057 2. HUD Title II Please refer to the Local HUD Field Offices. 3. Section 312 Loans Bill Hanson Department of Housing and Urban Development Rehabilitation Loans and Homesteading Division, Room 7168 451 Seventh Street, SW Washington, DC 20410 Telephone: 202-898-1000 "REFER TO CAIVRS INFORMATION" 4. SBA loans Walter Intlekofer Small Business Administration Operations Assistance Branch 409 Third Street, SW Washington, DC 20416 Telephone: 202-205-6481 5. USDA/FmHA loans Yuhauntus Eddy or Esther McQuaid USDA/Farmers Home Administration Quality Assurance Branch 1520 Market St., FC-351, Room 3519 St. Louis, MO 63103 Telephone: FTS 262-2492 Commercial: 314-539-2492 _____________________________________________________________________ 6. DVA loans Daniel D. Osendorf Department of Veterans Affairs Debt Management Center Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building Fort Snellin St. Paul, MN 55111 Telephone: 202-233-2853 7. ED loans Rosemary Beavers Department of Education Administrative and Institutional Management Section Division of Credit Management and Debt Collection 400 Maryland Avenue, S.W. Washington, DC 20202 Telephone: 202-708-4766 *U.S. Government Printing Office: 1992 - 312-218/60277