Equifax Now Enables 'All Employers Within 36 Months' Verification

Equifax Workforce Solutions announced that lenders can now request “All Employers Within 36 Months” to pull 36 prior months of income and employment data on The Work Number database. This will provide lenders with a more informed, expanded view of the consumer’s ability to pay.

Under the Fannie Mae guidelines, “stable and reliable flow of income is a key consideration in mortgage loan underwriting.” Those who fall under a different income scenario may work on commission or have had employment disruptions, or those who are applying with real-estate income or assets often require a deeper look into debt-to-income (DTI) and income stability. However, a 36-month review allows lenders to view income outside the calendar or tax years, and quickly identify income trends, according to a press release.

“The recent economic upheaval has meant that some lenders are seeing a rise in applications from borrowers with more complex income profiles which can slow down the approval and underwriting process,” said Joel Rickman, senior vice president of verification services at Equifax Workforce Solutions. “Most mortgage applications that come in with complex income will require two years of tax returns, but pulling three years of income and employment from The Work Number can show lenders data from a similar timeframe that helps give them  better context for considering ability to pay."

Verifications through The Work Number allow credential lenders to securely tap into the largest commercial source of consolidated employment information with more than 115 million active records. Ultimately, this will allow lenders to accept more borrowers in complex income situations due to the pandemic.