At MBA Annual 2025, HousingWire CEO Clayton Collins interviewed Rikard Bandebo, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Economist at VantageScore, about one of the biggest industry shifts in decades: the entrance of VantageScore into the mortgage ecosystem. 

In this episode:

Why is credit score competition important?
For decades, the mortgage industry has relied on one scoring model. With the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) expanding options, VantageScore introduces innovation, transparency, and fairness—allowing lenders to assess creditworthiness more accurately and consumers to qualify for mortgages previously out of reach.

How will this change expand homeownership?
VantageScore’s model incorporates up to 24 months of credit history and uses alternative data sources, helping identify five million additional households that could qualify for mortgages. These consumers are often in rural or high-rental communities, meaning the change supports economic growth and financial inclusion in underserved markets.

What are the implications for lenders and the market?

·       Lenders: Gain new tools to expand their customer base without increasing risk.

·       Consumers: See more consistent and transparent scoring.

·       Market: Competitive pricing for credit data, increased innovation, and better access to affordable lending.

What’s next for mortgage credit innovation?
Lenders are encouraged to back-test their portfolios, prepare internal systems, and align with new data channels to ensure readiness as the transition accelerates in 2026.