The Policy Change
Ginnie Mae announced it will temporarily exclude Federal Housing Administration loans in Trial Payment Plans from issuer delinquency ratio calculations for compliance purposes. The change became effective with monthly reporting due April 2, 2026, covering March 2026 data. Loans in TPPs will no longer count as delinquent for ratio compliance, even though they remain reported as delinquent in standard monthly loan-level reporting. Ginnie Mae President Joseph Gormley stated the exclusion is temporary and expected to remain in place until TPP volumes normalize to expected levels.
Why Ginnie Mae Made This Change
The FHA updated its single-family loss mitigation waterfall in 2025, reinstating required Trial Payment Plans before certain workout options like partial claims can be approved. This change forced delinquent borrowers to complete a TPP before receiving final loss mitigation solutions. As servicers evaluated more delinquent FHA loans under the new waterfall, TPP volumes increased significantly, pushing issuer delinquency rates higher. Ginnie Mae determined that the recent spike in reported delinquency levels for FHA loans was driven primarily by the longer resolution timeline created by the TPP requirement, not by deteriorating credit performance.
Context and Data
FHA delinquencies in Ginnie Mae pools averaged 9.2% from October 2025 through February 2026, up 90 basis points from the prior year. FHA mortgages account for more than 80% of the recent rise in national delinquency rates, with seriously delinquent FHA loan volumes up more than 40% over the period. However, early-stage delinquency metrics remained stable, with new delinquencies averaging 5.2% and 60-day delinquencies holding around 1.8%. Ginnie Mae's analysis indicated that the increase in delinquencies was not due to rapid deterioration into 90+ day delinquency status, suggesting the TPP requirement was the primary driver.
Implementation Details
Under the new policy, issuers must mark loans in TPPs with a default action code in their monthly reporting. Loans will continue to be reported as delinquent in standard monthly loan-level reporting but will be excluded from compliance ratio calculations. Ginnie Mae will regularly monitor the impact of TPP loans on issuer delinquency performance and committed to providing at least 60 days' notice before returning to its standard delinquency calculation method.
Future Policy Review
Ginnie Mae signaled that it expects to review its delinquency threshold policy more broadly in the context of today's marketplace, indicating potential longer-term changes to how delinquency risk is measured and enforced for issuers. The corporation did not specify a timeline for this broader review or indicate what changes might result. 
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