Fannie Mae Form 710: fields, required documents and automation
For mortgage servicers and loss mitigation teams: what's on Form 710, what a complete borrower response package includes, and which checks to automate.
Key takeaways
- Fannie Mae Form 710, the Mortgage Assistance Application, is the form a borrower who is behind or struggling with mortgage payments sends to the servicer to be evaluated for a workout option. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use the same form.
- It has six sections: borrower, property, hardship, income, assets, and the certification each borrower signs.
- A complete borrower response package is Form 710 completed in its entirety, the hardship documents for the hardship claimed, and income documents no more than 90 days old.
- Fannie Mae gives servicers 5 business days to acknowledge a package and say whether it's complete, and 30 days from a complete package to send a decision.
- Automation reads the form and every attachment and checks the package for completeness; the workout decision stays with the servicer's team.
On this page
Fannie Mae Form 710 is the Mortgage Assistance Application: the form a borrower who is struggling with mortgage payments sends to the servicer to be considered for help such as a forbearance plan, a repayment plan or a loan modification. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use the same form, and servicers' loss mitigation teams review it with the borrower's hardship and income documents to decide whether the package is complete and which options fit.
This guide covers the six sections of the form, the documents a complete package needs, the deadlines and checks, and how to automate the review.
What is Fannie Mae Form 710?#
Form 710, sometimes listed as FNMA Form 710, starts loss mitigation. Servicers include it in the solicitation package they send when a loan falls behind, and the borrower returns it with supporting documents as a borrower response package. It got its current name in 2017, when Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac redesigned the Uniform Borrower Assistance Form. Servicers may use an equivalent form, as long as it asks for the same information, documents and attestations.
It isn't a loan application. The borrower already has a mortgage, and the servicer reviews the package to choose among retention options (a forbearance plan, a repayment plan, a payment deferral or a Flex Modification) and liquidation options (a short sale or a deed-in-lieu). The application for a new mortgage is Form 1003.
Under Fannie Mae's Servicing Guide, a complete borrower response package has up to four parts:
Form 710
Completed in its entirety, signed and dated by the borrower and any co-borrower.Hardship documents
Whatever the form requires for the hardship checked, from nothing for unemployment to a divorce decree or a death certificate.Income documents
One set per income type, no more than 90 days old when the package is complete.IRS Form 4506-C
A tax transcript request, needed when the income information doesn't reconcile or when Fannie Mae asks for it.
The six sections of Form 710, and what to extract#
The footer reads "Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Form 710", and every copy has the same six sections; Freddie Mac's translated versions, such as Spanish, follow the same layout. These are the fields worth extracting and what the servicer does with them:
| Section | Fields to extract | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Borrower information | Names, last 4 digits of each SSN, email, phones, preferred contact method and text consent, military status | Matching the loan record; contact rules; options for servicemembers |
| Property information | Property and mailing address; primary residence, second home or investment; owner occupied, rented or vacant; keep, sell, transfer or undecided; listing agent; HOA dues | Which options apply: keeping the home points to retention, selling or transferring it to a short sale or deed-in-lieu |
| Hardship information | Start date; short-term (up to 6 months), long-term or resolved; the hardship types checked | Which hardship documents are required |
| Borrower income | A monthly amount for each of eight income types, from gross wages and self-employment to rental and benefit income | The evaluation, and which income documents are required |
| Current borrower assets | Checking and cash, savings and CDs, non-retirement stocks and bonds, other (retirement and 529 accounts excluded) | The evaluation, alongside income |
| Borrower certification and agreement | Borrower and co-borrower signatures and dates | Completeness, and consent to a credit report |
Documents required with Form 710#
The form lists the documents for each hardship and each income type, so completeness can be checked line by line:
| If the form claims | Attach |
|---|---|
| Hardship: unemployment, reduced income, higher housing costs or a disaster | No hardship documents |
| Hardship: disability or serious illness | A written statement from the borrower or other documentation (no medical details required) |
| Hardship: divorce or legal separation | The final divorce decree or separation agreement, or a recorded quitclaim deed |
| Hardship: separation of unmarried borrowers | A recorded quitclaim deed, or a binding agreement that the non-occupying borrower has given up rights to the property |
| Hardship: death of a borrower or wage earner | A death certificate, or an obituary or news article |
| Hardship: distant employment transfer | PCS orders for active-duty service members; otherwise an offer letter or employer notice, plus proof of any relocation assistance |
| Hardship: other | A written explanation of the hardship and any relevant documents |
| Income: wages, overtime, commissions, tips, bonuses | The most recent pay stub with year-to-date earnings, or the two most recent bank statements showing the deposits |
| Income: self-employment | Two bank statements, the latest signed profit and loss statement, or the latest signed business or personal tax return |
| Income: Social Security, pension, disability and other benefits | Two bank statements showing the deposits, or award letters |
| Income: rental | Two bank statements showing the rent, or two deposited rent checks |
| Income: unemployment benefits | None |
Investment, insurance and other income follow the same pattern: two statements or other proof of the amount and how often it's paid. For a borrower in an active Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, Fannie Mae also lets servicers accept the bankruptcy schedules in place of Form 710, if they're no more than 90 days old when received.
How a Form 710 package moves through loss mitigation#
Packages arrive by mail, fax, email or a borrower portal, and a single scan can hold the form and every attachment. Before anyone evaluates options, the package has to be sorted, read and checked for completeness.
- Mail and fax
- Borrower portal
- 01Split and classify pages
- 02Read the form and attachments
- 03Check completeness
- 04Review exceptions
The clock starts when the package arrives. These are Fannie Mae's deadlines; Regulation X sets the same 5-day and 30-day windows when an application arrives well before a foreclosure sale.
- Acknowledge within 5 business daysConfirm receipt in writing and say whether the package is complete. If it isn't, an Incomplete Information Notice lists what's missing.
- Keep income documents currentThey can be no more than 90 days old on the date the package is complete (180 days for a post-disaster evaluation).
- Decide within 30 daysEvaluate a complete package and send the decision no later than 30 days after it became complete.
- Give the borrower 14 daysThe borrower has 14 days to accept or decline the workout offered.
Checks to run on every Form 710 package#
- Complete formEvery section filled in, including the hardship start date and duration, and signed and dated by each borrower.
- Right hardship documentsThe documents match every hardship checked, or the form says none are needed.
- Income documents for each income typeEvery income amount on the form has its documents, dated within 90 days of the package being complete.
- Income agreesMonthly wages match the pay stub's earnings, and benefit or rental income matches the deposits on the bank statements.
- Identity and loan matchNames, the last 4 digits of each SSN and the property address match the servicing record for the loan number.
- Occupancy and intentPrimary residence, second home or investment, and whether the borrower wants to keep or sell, since both narrow the options.
- Inconsistencies flaggedIncome that doesn't reconcile across documents is flagged for a Form 4506-C transcript request.
- Dates recordedThe day the package arrived and the day it became complete, which start the 5-day and 30-day clocks.
How to automate Form 710 data extraction#
The form is short, but the package isn't: handwriting, checkboxes, faxed pages and attachments in any order. Automation sorts and reads the whole package on arrival, so people spend their time on the incomplete ones and the decisions.
Manual review
- Staff sort each package and key the form into the servicing system
- Completeness is checked by eye against the hardship and income tables
- Missing documents surface days later, close to the 5-day deadline
- Every package gets the same attention, complete or not
Automated review
- Pages are split and classified, and the form is read, handwriting and checkboxes included
- Each hardship and income type is matched to the documents it requires
- Missing or out-of-date documents are flagged the day the package arrives
- People review only the packages and fields that fail a check
Docsumo is an intelligent document processing (IDP) platform. It takes packages by email, upload or API, splits and classifies the pages (on the Business plan), and reads the form, pay stubs, bank statements and tax returns, handwritten entries included. Fields it's unsure about go to a reviewer with the source highlighted. Checks that compare documents, such as stated income against pay stubs and deposits, run as cross-document validation on the Enterprise plan. It doesn't decide which workout a borrower gets: results go to your servicing system through API and webhooks.
- 99%field-level accuracy across 250+ document types
- 95%+of documents processed straight through, without manual review
The bottom line#
Form 710 is the front door to loss mitigation, and the deadlines start when the package arrives. Extract every section, match each hardship and income type to the documents it requires, record the dates, and let your team spend its time on incomplete packages and workout decisions.
Book a demo with a few of your own Form 710 packages, or start a free trial.
Frequently asked questions#
What is Fannie Mae Form 710?
Form 710 is the Mortgage Assistance Application that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac use for loss mitigation. A borrower who is having trouble with mortgage payments sends it to the servicer with hardship and income documents, and the servicer uses it to evaluate options such as a forbearance plan, a repayment plan, a payment deferral, a loan modification, a short sale or a deed-in-lieu.
Is Form 710 the same as the Uniform Borrower Assistance Form?
Yes. In 2017 Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac redesigned the Uniform Borrower Assistance Form and renamed it the Mortgage Assistance Application, keeping the number 710. The redesign dropped questions that weren't used to evaluate borrowers and simplified the documents it asks for.
What documents are required with Form 710?
It depends on the hardship and the income. Unemployment, reduced income, higher housing costs and disasters need no hardship documents; divorce, death, disability and relocation do. Wage income needs the most recent pay stub with year-to-date earnings, or the two most recent bank statements showing the deposits.
How long does a servicer have to respond to a mortgage assistance application?
Fannie Mae requires servicers to acknowledge a package in writing within 5 business days and say whether it's complete. Under Regulation X, a complete application received more than 37 days before a foreclosure sale must be evaluated for every available option within 30 days.
What is the difference between Form 710 and Form 1003?
Form 1003 is the application for a new mortgage. Form 710 is for a borrower who already has one and needs help making the payments. See 1003 mortgage application data extraction.
Can Form 710 be submitted online?
Yes, if the servicer offers it. The form lists mail, fax and online options, and Fannie Mae's Servicing Guide lets servicers give borrowers a secure way to prepare and send the package electronically.
Sources
- Freddie Mac: Form 710, Mortgage Assistance Application (effective 12/11/24)
- Fannie Mae Servicing Guide D2-2-05: Receiving a Borrower Response Package
- Fannie Mae Servicing Guide D2-2-04: Sending a Borrower a Solicitation Package for a Workout Option
- Fannie Mae Servicing Guide D2-3.1-01: Determining the Appropriate Workout Option
- Fannie Mae Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2017-08: Updates to Form 710
- CFPB Regulation X, 12 CFR 1024.41: Loss mitigation procedures
- Freddie Mac: Mortgage Assistance Application in Spanish
First published . Last updated .