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Mortgages for 2- to 4-unit Primary Residences
An important form of affordable housing for low-to moderate-income borrowers

Related Products

Expand your market opportunities in many urban communities, where 2- to 4-unit housing is the key affordable housing inventory for primary residences.

Originating mortgages secured by 2- to 4-unit properties with a variety of Freddie Mac mortgage products helps you attract more low- and moderate-income borrowers and borrowers in underserved communities.

Through Freddie Mac mortgage products like Home Possible Mortgages eligible for origination with 2- to 4-unit primary residences, you can serve a greater number of borrowers with diverse financial circumstances, and increase your Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)-eligible originations.

Product Features

We are revising our requirements for Mortgages for 2- to 4-Unit Primary Residences effective for Freddie Mac settlements on and after January 2, 2009. Please refer to our October 17 Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide Bulletin [PDF 183K ] for more information.

Feature Requirements

Property Type
  • 2- to 4-unit owner-occupied primary residences, including condos and PUDs.

Eligible Mortgage Products
  • 15-, 20-, 30- and 40-year fixed-rate mortgages
  • Most standard ARMs
  • Home Possible Mortgages
  • 5- and 7-year balloon/reset mortgages
  • 2-unit Loan Prospector® A-minus Mortgages
  • 2-unit Affordable Merit Rate Mortgages
  • Seller-owned Modified Mortgages
  • Seller-owned Converted Mortgages
  • Financed Permanent Buydown Mortgages
  • 2-unit Streamlined Refinance Mortgages

HUD Section 184 Indian Housing Loan Guarantee Program Mortgages

Transaction Type
  • Purchase
  • No cash-out refinance
  • Cash-out refinance

Maximum LTV Ratios

  • Maximum LTV ratios must comply with Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide (Guide) Section 23.4.

Eligibility/Underwriting

  • Rental income from the other units can be added to your borrower’s total income to calculate housing expense and debt-to-income ratios.
  • Refer to your Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide under the mortgage product type you wish to originate and sell to Freddie Mac.

Execution Options
  • Servicing-retained Cash
  • WAC ARM Cash
  • Fixed-rate Guarantor
  • WAC ARM Guarantor
  • MultiLender Swap

Delivery Fees
  • Postsettlement delivery fees may apply, including the Number of Units delivery fee, based on the individual characteristics of the mortgage. See Guide Exhibit 19 [PDF 183K] for details on applicable fees.


Download a Mortgages for 2- to 4-Unit Properties fact sheet [PDF 180K] for more details.

Lender Benefits

Originating Freddie Mac mortgages secured by 2- to 4-unit properties helps you:

  • Reach into growing affordable markets, meeting the needs of more first-time homebuyers, families in underserved areas, and others.
  • Grow your origination volume with a full array of mortgage products to choose from when originating mortgages for 2- to 4-unit properties.
  • Leverage mortgages for 2- to 4-unit properties as another way to meet your CRA volume requirements.

Benefits for Your Borrowers

Originating Freddie Mac mortgages secured by 2- to 4-unit properties helps your borrowers:

  • Increase their buying power using rental income.
  • Obtain home financing that meets their individual needs, whether it’s flexible down payment options, low down payment solutions and more.

For More Information

Training Opportunities

Visit The Learning Center for live and recorded web conferences, access to classroom-style workshops and self-study tools – all designed to help you stay competitive, serve more borrowers and make it easier to do business with us.

The information in this document is not a replacement or substitute for information found in the Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide and/or the terms of your Master Agreement and/or Master Commitment.



© 2008 Freddie Mac