CAIVRS Hit Blocking Your Mortgage? Here’s How to Clear It Fast

If your lender just told you that you’re on CAIVRS, it means the federal government has flagged you for unpaid federal debt — usually a defaulted student loan. That flag carries real financial risk: it blocks access to federally backed mortgages and can delay or derail your path to homeownership.

You won’t see it on your credit report, but it can instantly stop an FHA, VA, or USDA loan from closing until it’s cleared.

CAIVRS — short for Credit Alert Verification Reporting System — is a federal database managed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It alerts government-backed lenders when an applicant has delinquent or defaulted federal debt, such as:

• Defaulted federal student loans

• Unpaid federal taxes

• Foreclosed FHA or VA loans

• Unresolved SBA loan balances or judgments

When a lender runs your information during underwriting, CAIVRS automatically checks your record. If you’re listed, the system returns a “hit,” meaning you’re not eligible for any new federally backed loan or guarantee until the debt is resolved or formally waived.

Unlike your credit report, you can’t view CAIVRS yourself. Only approved lenders and federal agencies can access it. That’s why most borrowers discover the problem only when their loan officer calls to say the mortgage is on hold because of a “CAIVRS hit.”

Most people end up on CAIVRS because of defaulted federal student loans. It’s the single most common trigger for mortgage delays under FHA, VA, or USDA programs.

When a federal loan goes into default, the Department of Education reports it as a delinquent federal debt. That information flows into CAIVRS, where it remains until the default is resolved through rehabilitation, consolidation, or full repayment.

You can also appear in CAIVRS for other unresolved federal debts, including:

• A foreclosure or claim filed on a prior FHA-insured mortgage

• A VA or SBA loan that ended in default or loss to the government

• Unpaid federal taxes or judgments owed to the U.S. Treasury

You don’t get a warning before this happens. There’s no letter, email, or notification from HUD. You typically find out only after your lender runs the CAIVRS check and tells you the loan can’t move forward until you’re cleared.

For borrowers with student loans, that usually means contacting the Default Resolution Group or checking your StudentAid.gov account to confirm whether your loans are still in default and to start the process of bringing them current.

A CAIVRS hit freezes your FHA, VA, or USDA mortgage until the debt is cleared. The system bars lenders from moving forward, and there’s no workaround or exception your loan officer can offer.

Here’s what typically happens next:

1. Your mortgage application pauses. The lender can’t continue underwriting or issue a final approval until the flag is gone.

2. You’ll get a CAIVRS code. Each code shows why you were listed — “D” for default, “F” for foreclosure, “J” for judgment, and so on. Ask your lender which agency reported it; that determines how you fix it.

3. Your lender can’t fix it for you. Only the federal agency that reported the debt — most often the Department of Education for student loans — can clear your record.

4. Deadlines start closing in. Many borrowers learn about CAIVRS after they’ve made an offer or paid for an appraisal. Until you’re cleared, the mortgage is effectively frozen.

To move forward, you’ll need to verify why you’re listed and start the process of clearing it with the right agency. For most borrowers, that starts with confirming whether their federal student loans are in default.

You can’t pull your own CAIVRS report — access is limited to federal agencies and approved lenders. That’s part of what makes this problem so frustrating: you only hear about it when your mortgage stalls, and now you have to piece together what caused it.

Start by asking your loan officer what they saw. They can tell you which federal agency reported the debt and which CAIVRS code appeared on your file. Most of the time, it traces back to the Department of Education because of defaulted federal student loans.

Next, confirm it for yourself. Log in to StudentAid.gov using your FSA ID. If your account shows a status of “in default” or lists the Default Resolution Group or a collection agency, that’s the source of the CAIVRS flag. If your loans show as current, double-check that the update has been processed — older records sometimes linger in the system for a few weeks after resolution.

If your student loans aren’t the issue, your lender’s CAIVRS results will list the agency that reported you. Each one handles its own debts: HUD or FHA for prior mortgage claims, the VA for loan losses, the SBA for business loans, and the Treasury for unpaid taxes or other federal obligations. You’ll need to contact that agency directly to verify the debt and ask how to clear it.

To clear CAIVRS, you must show the agency that reported you that the debt is either fully resolved or under an approved repayment plan. These clearance rules come from the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (as of 2024), and may change if federal collection policies are updated.

Once the agency confirms the fix, your record is updated and the flag is removed. If your CAIVRS issue stems from a defaulted federal student loan, there are two ways to resolve it:

• Consolidation ends the default immediately. Once your new Direct Consolidation Loan is processed and placed on an income-driven plan, the flag usually clears within 30–60 days.

• Rehabilitation takes longer but removes the default from your credit report. After five on-time payments, the CAIVRS hold lifts; after nine, it disappears completely.

If you’re already under contract to buy a home, time matters. Borrowers who qualify for Direct Consolidation can often speed up CAIVRS clearance by waiving the 10-day waiting period during the application. When approved and prioritized, the Department of Education can complete the new loan in as little as four to five weeks — sometimes fast enough to save a pending mortgage closing.

The update isn’t instant — even after you fix the debt, the system needs time to catch up.

For student loans, consolidation is fastest. Once the new loan is approved and showing as current, CAIVRS usually clears within 30 to 60 days. Rehabilitation takes longer: the flag lifts after about five payments and disappears completely once all nine are made.

Other federal debts, like FHA or VA mortgage claims or SBA loans, can take a few weeks to a few months after repayment or release before the change shows up. Each agency controls its own reporting schedule, and lenders can’t speed it up.

Once the agency confirms your record is updated, ask your lender to rerun the CAIVRS check. That’s the only way to verify your clearance and move your mortgage forward.

Once the flag is gone, your mortgage can move forward. The lender reruns CAIVRS, gets a “no record” result, and resumes underwriting. If you were under contract on a home, that clearance usually means you can proceed to closing.

Clearing CAIVRS doesn’t erase every trace of the past issue — it just restores your eligibility for new federally backed loans. A loan consolidation will still show “paid through consolidation” on your credit report, and rehabilitation leaves the old late-payment history, though the “default” mark itself disappears.

After clearance, your priority is staying current. Enroll in an income-driven repayment plan for student loans or maintain any repayment agreement you set up. If you default again, CAIVRS will flag you automatically, and the next mortgage deal will fall apart even faster.