Skip to main content

Will Colvin

Acting Director, Financial Markets and Community Investment at the U.S. Government Accountability Office, featured on GAO's Watchdog Report podcast.

Oct 6, 2026

1:53
What can you tell us about it?
1:54
Congress passed a new law called the Homebuyer's Privacy Protection Act, which limits who credit bureaus can sell these mortgage trigger leads to.
2:02
This new law went into effect in March 2026, and it says that credit bureaus can only sell this information to lenders that have an existing relationship with the homebuyer.
2:14
So that means that things like your current bank and your lender, if you already have one, can still buy these trigger leads, but the other random lenders and brokers will not be able to.
2:24
So this law's only been in effect for a little over six months, so it's a little early for us to render final judgment, but we do think that homebuyers will be better off because of it.
2:33
They'll certainly begin receiving fewer mortgage solicitations because fewer lenders and brokers can buy these trigger leads now, and we also think that homebuyers might be more receptive to these offers because they'll be coming from lenders that the homebuyer already knows and likely trusts.
2:49
So in many ways, this is a good news story because Congress saw a problem and has taken action to address it.
4:57
Is there concern that this legislation's gonna curb competition?

We value your privacy

We use cookies to understand how you use our platform and to improve your experience. Click “Accept All” to consent, or “Decline non-essential” to opt out of non-essential cookies. Read our Privacy Policy.