'Credit Bureaus Are Selling Your Mortgage Data Without Permission,' Industry Leader Warns

Written by:

Steve Marcinuk

Date:

12 Jun 2025

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The credit bureaus’ practice of selling consumer mortgage application data without explicit consent represents a “categorically wrong” violation of privacy that needs immediate reform, according to Brendan McKay, Chief Advocacy Officer of the Broker Action Coalition.

“The credit bureaus are private, publicly traded companies on stock exchanges, and they get to sell consumer data without permission or proper disclosure,” McKay says. “In what world should this exist?”

The Outdated Permission Structure

McKay argues that the current system stems from the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970, when shopping for mortgages meant physically visiting multiple bank branches. “Mortgages and real estate transactions took 90 days to close, and this was a way to make it easier for consumers to see competitive offers,” he explains.

But that original justification no longer applies in today’s digital age, according to McKay. “You do not have to walk from one bank branch to another to get a mortgage. Furthermore, the credit bureaus have completely abused this privilege for profit.”

The Trust Problem

The practice creates significant confusion and erodes trust between mortgage professionals and their clients, McKay says. When consumers apply for a mortgage and have their credit pulled, they often start receiving unsolicited calls from other lenders.

“Most consumers… know that their broker pulled their credit, and then they started getting all these phone calls,” McKay explains. “The most logical conclusion is that their broker sold their information, not that the credit bureaus, who consumers consider boring, trusted institutions would ever do such a thing.”

This misunderstanding damages relationships at a critical time. “It causes confusion and distrust when they’ve just gone under contract and they’ve got a lot going on,” McKay notes. “Brokers work very hard to not only get that trust, but earn and deserve it, and it gets undercut.”

The Legislative Solution

New legislation recently reintroduced in Congress would require credit bureaus to obtain consumer permission before selling their data – shifting from the current opt-out to an opt-in model.

“You could put Band-Aid solutions on the problem, and then technology changes in five or 10 years, and they find another way to abuse it,” McKay argues. “That is what this bill does. It turns off the spigot. The credit bureaus are no longer able to sell consumer data without their permission.”

The issue resonates deeply with mortgage professionals. According to McKay, when the Broker Action Coalition surveyed its donors about priority issues three years ago, reforming trigger lead practices ranked number one “and it was not even close.”

While some mortgage brokers do utilize trigger leads, McKay says the practice is more commonly used by large call centers. He believes legislation requiring consumer consent would be “overwhelmingly positive” for the mortgage broker channel while protecting consumer privacy.

“This is not just about fixing the abuse or putting a band-aid solution on it,” McKay concludes. “It’s time to take away the privilege altogether, because there’s no justification for having it in the first place.”