HUD’s FHA Case Number Transfer Request Form is what an FHA-approved lender uses to ask HUD to move an existing 10-digit case number from one mortgagee to another when the normal electronic transfer through FHA Connection has failed or the holding lender won’t cooperate. Only an approved lender can submit it, and it must be accompanied by a signed borrower authorization letter. Submission goes through the HUD FHA Self-Service Portal or by email to answers@hud.gov.1U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Case Number Transfer Request Form There is no fee to the borrower.2U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HOC Reference Guide – Lender Transfers
When the Paper Form Is Actually Needed
Most case number transfers never touch this form. When the originating lender cooperates, the transfer runs electronically through FHA Connection: the lender on record enters the receiving lender’s FHA ID, chooses whether to include the appraisal, and submits. The case status updates immediately.3U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Connection Single Family Origination – Case/Appraisal Transfer
The paper Transfer Request Form is for the situation where the new lender has tried and failed to get the holding lender to release the case that way.4U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. What Is the HUD FHA Self-Service Portal and How Can I Use It The borrower has told the old lender they want to move; the old lender hasn’t acted; the new lender needs HUD to intervene. That’s the moment for this form.
Two boundaries worth knowing before you fill anything out. If the originating lender has gone out of business entirely, HUD treats that as a case cancellation rather than a transfer, and the new lender simply requests a fresh case number.1U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Case Number Transfer Request Form And an uninsured case number automatically purges from HUD’s system 13 months after the last action on it. Once that happens, there’s nothing left to transfer.
What the Form Asks For
The form itself is short. It requires:1U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Case Number Transfer Request Form
- The 10-digit FHA case number assigned to the mortgage application.5U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Case Number Assignment Update Page Field Descriptions
- The Originator ID, the 10-digit FHA ID of the lender currently holding the case.5U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Case Number Assignment Update Page Field Descriptions
- The Sponsor ID, if the originating lender operates under a sponsor.
- Phone number and email address for the requesting lender.
- A brief written account of the steps the new lender has already taken to get the holding lender to release the case.
- A signed letter from the borrower stating they no longer want to work with the previous lender and have chosen the new lender instead.
The borrower authorization letter is not optional. Without it, HUD will not process the transfer. The borrower’s name on that letter needs to match the name on the original loan application exactly.
How To Submit It
The new lender submits the completed form and the borrower authorization letter through the HUD FHA Self-Service Portal at answers.hud.gov/FHA/s/. An FHA Connection account is required for the submitting lender.4U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. What Is the HUD FHA Self-Service Portal and How Can I Use It The form can also be emailed directly to answers@hud.gov.6U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Single Family Case Processing Requirements
After submitting through the portal, the system generates a PDF confirmation. That confirmation may contain language about emailing answers@hud.gov, but the request is already routed automatically; no follow-up email is required.4U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. What Is the HUD FHA Self-Service Portal and How Can I Use It Once HUD acts on the request, the new lender should log into FHA Connection and run a Case Query to confirm the case has moved.
What Happens With the Appraisal
The appraisal is treated as a separate item from the case number, and it’s usually the sticking point. HUD Handbook 4000.1 requires the first lender to transfer an existing appraisal to the new lender within five business days of the borrower’s request, but the first lender does not have to release it until it has been reimbursed for the appraisal cost.7U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1
In practice, that means the new lender will typically ask the borrower to reimburse the original lender’s appraisal fee so the appraisal can travel with the case. Paying it once is cheaper than paying for a second valuation.
When the Holding Lender Refuses To Cooperate
If the originating lender ignores or refuses the transfer, HUD expects the new lender’s branch manager to contact the holding lender directly and try to resolve it before escalating.2U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HOC Reference Guide – Lender Transfers If that fails, the Case Transfer Request Form goes to HUD along with:
- A letter outlining every step the new lender has taken to accomplish the transfer
- A list of any fees the original lender has requested
- A proposed resolution for those fee requests
- The signed borrower authorization letter
HUD reviews the submission and can force the transfer when the holding lender has no legitimate basis for refusing. Borrowers who want to check on an escalated transfer can call the FHA Resource Center at 1-800-225-5342 or email answers@hud.gov.8U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Resource Center
Mistakes That Get Requests Bounced
A few predictable errors send transfer requests back unprocessed.
The case number on the form has to match HUD’s records exactly. One transposed digit and the request comes back. The Originator ID trips people up the same way: HUD assigns each lender a 10-digit FHA ID, with the first five digits serving as the Mortgagee ID.9U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Lender Notification Layout Entering five digits where the form calls for ten stalls the request.
Missing or vague borrower authorization letters are the most frequent reason a request comes back untouched. The letter needs to clearly state the borrower wants to leave the current lender and work with the new one, and it needs to name both lenders.
The receiving lender’s FHA approval also has to cover the loan type and the property’s geographic area. If it doesn’t, the transfer fails no matter how clean the paperwork looks.10U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Connection Single Family Origination – Case/Appraisal Transfer Business Background
And if the case number has been dormant for close to 13 months, confirm it’s still active in HUD’s system before spending time on the form. An expired case number can’t be transferred; the new lender has to request a fresh one instead.