Attorney Opinion Letters

In April 2022, Fannie Mae altered its selling guide to allow the use of attorney opinion letters in addition to title insurance for certain loans in limited circumstances. The guide change was designed to conform to Freddie Mac’s guide allowing attorney opinion letters, in existence since at least 2008. Following this announcement, both enterprises included calls to examine the expanded use of AOLs to reduce title and settlement costs under their Equitable Housing Finance Plans5. Subsequently, multiple providers announced plans to sell AOL products nationwide that purported to meet these guide requirements, though neither Government Sponsored Enterprise (GSE) has provided any indication as to whether these products meet the requirements of their guides. These products are not regulated by state insurance and consumer protection regulators and information about coverage is not readily available to the public.

Review Fannie's Selling Guide Updates »

Navigating Fannie Mae Guidelines For Attorney Opinion Letters vs. Title Insurance
ALTA January 2024

Guidance from State Regulators on Unregulated Title Insurance Products