Hawley Probes FICO Over Mortgage Score Price Hikes

FICO, formally Fair Isaac Corporation, has long dominated credit scoring in the U.S. mortgage market, partly because loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac historically relied on its scores. A standard mortgage credit pull generally obtains a FICO score from each of the three major credit bureaus, while repeated pulls can multiply the expense. Lenders typically pass those costs to borrowers, making pricing a housing-affordability and competition issue, particularly for first-time buyers.

On March 23, 2026, Republican Senator Josh Hawley opened a congressional investigation and asked Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson to launch a parallel review. Hawley said FICO doubled its 2026 per-score price to $10 from $4.95, potentially adding about $500 million in industry costs. An April survey by the Community Home Lenders of America put average credit-report costs per closed loan at $540 in 2026, up from about $50 in 2022, and said unsuccessful applications and repeated pulls further increase the burden.