The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has announced plans to cut back on “higher-risk” loans, a move that will protect taxpayers from losses but may hamper some first-time buyers.

While the FHA insured over 1 million mortgages in 2018, it also saw the average borrower credit score fall to 670, the lowest level in a decade. More than half of FHA-insured loan borrowers in the last fiscal year also had to debt-to-income ratios above 50%. The stricter loan requirements will go into effect with all FHA mortgages with case numbers assigned on March 18 or later.