What Is A 1003 In Mortgage?

If Fannie Mae’s Form 1003 isn’t showing your property status right—or worse, the file refuses to upload to Desktop Underwriter—don’t panic. Nine times out of ten, it’s just a stale code or a formatting hiccup. Re-enter the “Property Status” field in Section II, save the latest 2026-compliant PDF as “URLA_2026_v1.3.pdf,” and try the upload again.

What’s Happening

Since Fannie Mae rolled out the 2021 redesign—and locked it in with the 2026 update—every new loan file has to use v1.3. If your lender’s system still spits out old “Property Status” codes like S, PS, or R, or if Desktop Underwriter labels the file “Out of Scope,” the data’s either missing or scrambled. Honestly, this is the most common reason DU rejects a URLA.

Step-by-Step Solution

1. Open the URLA in your lender’s LOS—Encompass 2026.1 is the usual suspect.
2. Head straight to Section II → Property Information → Property Status.
3. Pick the right code from the 2026 dropdown:

   Code	Meaning
   S	Sold
   PS	Pending Sale
   R	Rental (Investment)
   N	New Construction

4. Save the record. Then export the URLA as a PDF: File → Export → URLA PDF (2026).
5. In DU, upload the file under Loan Details → Documents → URLA. Name it “URLA_2026_v1.3.pdf” so DU knows it’s the freshest version.
6. Click Validate & Submit. If DU still balks, jot down the error code and move on to the next section.

If This Didn’t Work

• Manual XML Fix: Grab the XML schema from Fannie Mae’s URLA page. Open it in Notepad++, fix the tag, re-zip with the PDF, and try again.
• Lender Override: Ask your LO to flip Settings → DU → Allow Legacy Override in Encompass (only admins see this switch). Submit once, then flip it back to keep things clean.
• Fresh Application: If DU coughs up “Borrower Not Found,” create a brand-new borrower record in the LOS, re-enter everything, and re-export the URLA.

Prevention Tips

Keep your LOS on the latest build—Encompass 2026.1 or newer—and run a URLA Pre-Check every Monday morning. Bookmark the 2026 URLA Tech Guide so you’re never caught off-guard by code changes. Train loan officers to fill the new “ULI” field (Conditionally Required since 2021) the first time—it saves a ton of rework down the road.