Argyle + AIM FAQs
What does AIM stand for?
In the mortgage and housing space, AIM stands for Asset and Income Modeler. It’s a component of Freddie Mac’s Loan Product Advisor® (LPA℠), an automated underwriting system that allows mortgage lenders to weigh the risk of a potential loan against Freddie Mac’s established credit criteria.
AIM takes this technology a step further by automating the way borrowers’ income, employment, and assets are assessed using data from third-party service providers. It’s a way for lenders not only to streamline the loan origination process—saving them significant time and resources—but also to enhance the quality of their loans, ensure they can confidently meet Freddie Mac’s eligibility requirements, and get relief from reps and warranties.
Are AIM and LPA part of Freddie Mac?
Yes. Asset and Income Modeler (AIM) and Loan Product Advisor® (LPA℠) are both tools offered through Freddie Mac, aimed at simplifying the loan origination process for participating mortgage lenders.
LPA is an automated underwriting system allowing lenders to assess a potential loan’s risk profile against Freddie Mac’s credit requirements and eligibility criteria. AIM plays a critical role within the LPA system, automating income, employment, and asset evaluations for lenders using third-party service provider data.
You can learn more about AIM and LPA through the Freddie Mac website.
How can I access the Freddie Mac LPA eligibility matrix?
You can download a reference guide for documenting your LPA loans through the Freddie Mac website. You can also refer to their Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide for information on eligibility requirements for specific programs.
What are the benefits of using AIM and LPA?
AIM and LPA streamline the end-to-end loan origination process for participating mortgage lenders and automatically assess all potential loans against Freddie Mac’s eligibility requirements.
In concrete terms, that means:
- Greater efficiency. AIM and LPA automate essential underwriting workflows like collecting and verifying borrowers’ income, employment, and asset data. That means lenders can eliminate time-consuming, manual tasks from their day-to-day work and close promising loans faster.
- Lower costs. Automating document collection and verifications means less missing or inaccurate data, less back-and-forth with borrowers, and less need for manual reviews—all of which can quickly drain a lender’s resources.
- Higher-quality loans. AIM and LPA leverage real-time income, employment, and asset data sourced through third-party service providers. That means more accurate assessments of a borrower’s eligibility, more confident loan decisions, and lower fraud and default rates. In fact, Freddie Mac reports that loans originated using AIM are 2.1 times less likely to become delinquent.
- Relief from reps and warranties. Loans originated using AIM and LPA are automatically evaluated against Freddie Mac’s eligibility requirements. Mortgage lenders get peace of mind knowing that their loans meet related criteria, meaning lower buyback risk and freedom from representations and warranties when selling to Freddie Mac down the line.
- A better borrower experience. Borrowers benefit, too, since they’re not forced to track down and scan documents like pay stubs every time a lender needs to verify their income or employment.
How do I use AIM and LPA?
You can access LPA—and embedded AIM capabilities—through the Freddie Mac Loan Advisor portal or your loan origination system (LOS) of choice. If you’re a new seller or servicer, you’ll need to register with Freddie Mac’s Access Manager first. It’s a pretty straightforward process, and there are a number of tutorials and other accessible resources to guide you if you need help.
If you’re an existing Argyle customer (or become one), it’s easy to leverage our partnership with AIM by following a few simple steps:
1. Log in to Argyle Console, and generate a VOIE report as your normally would.
2. Copy and paste the related reference number (which can be found at the top of your report) into your loan origination system (LOS) of choice.
3. If your LOS asks you to provide the service provider that generated the report (either instead of, or in addition to, your reference number), enter Argyle.
How does AIM support income assessment?
AIM’s technology automates the way borrowers’ creditworthiness is evaluated by streaming verified financial data—including income, employment, and asset information—from third-party service providers.
It’s a way of assuring that lenders have quick, easy access to reliable income details without having to chase down and process documents like paystubs, W-2s, and tax returns. That, in turn, allows for smarter credit decisions, faster close times, and superior loan outcomes. According to Freddie Mac, loans originated using the AIM tool are 2.1 times less likely to turn delinquent.
What third-party verification providers can I use in conjunction with AIM and LPA?
Freddie Mac works with a number of third-party service providers to source accurate income, employment, and asset data for their AIM and LPA systems.
Approved income and employment data providers include Argyle, Equifax (TWN), Experian, Finicity, Truework, and Truv. Approved asset account data providers include Blend, Informative Research, Plaid, and PointServ. You can view a full list of Freddie Mac’s approved third-party service providers on their website.
To learn more about how Argyle’s direct payroll connections support AIM with accurate, real-time data, visit this article on our exciting partnership.
What are the advantages of using Argyle for VOIE compared to other authorized third-party verification providers?
- Unlike many other third-party verification providers, Argyle leverages consumer-permissioned data. That means borrowers themselves enable access to their income and employment details, and we’re able to retrieve it in real time directly from the source of truth: their payroll accounts.Direct-source data isn’t just collected more efficiently and more accurately; it’s also more comprehensive. On average, our platform delivers a 95% data completeness rate, with that number climbing even higher for GSE-required fields—like the type requested by Freddie Mac. With Argyle, mortgage lenders get all of the insights they need to make quick, smart business decisions.
As an added bonus, Argyle makes it easy for borrowers to share their information with just a few clicks—and they only have to share it once for lenders to enjoy ongoing access. It’s why we consistently see conversion rates above 55%, making us the highest-converting income and employment data network on the market.
You can learn more about our industry-leading Income & Employment Verification solution on our product page.
Where can I access customer support for Freddie Mac’s LPA?
If you have a specific question, you can call Freddie Mac’s Customer Support Center directly at 800-FREDDIE or consult their list of FAQs. Freddie Mac also offers a number of free training resources—including webinars and step-by-step tutorials—through their website.
Keep in mind, if you’re an Argyle customer (or become one), you can reach out to your account representative for personalized, hands-on support.
