The presser below was released this morning by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors
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Washington, D.C.—Less than 34 months after its official launch, all 50 states have joined the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (NMLS, or the System). Hawaii became the last state to join NMLS on Monday, thereby ensuring improved supervision of non-depository mortgage lenders, brokers, and mortgage loan originators maintaining licensure through a single system shared by all state mortgage regulators.
“NMLS was built to be the foundation of a coordinated and transparent system of mortgage supervision implemented by state regulators,” said Neil Milner, CSBS President and CEO. “Having all 50 states on the System provides greater transparency within the mortgage industry and makes information available to consumers as they obtain mortgages from state-licensed entities.”
“This milestone is a testament to the hard work and commitment of state mortgage regulators,” said Gavin Gee, Director of the Idaho Department of Finance and Chairman of the State Regulatory Registry LLC (SRR). A limited liability company established by CSBS and the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators, SRR operates NMLS on behalf of state regulators. “State regulators have demonstrated their ability to coordinate on an unprecedented level to enhance supervision of the residential mortgage industry and protect consumers,” Gee continued.
Launched in January 2008 with seven states (ID, IA, KY, MA, NE, NY, RI), NMLS now includes 58 state agencies from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. NMLS currently tracks nearly 16,000 mortgage companies holding over 30,000 licenses and over 126,000 mortgage loan originators holding over 207,000 licenses.
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MORE BACKGROUND INFO:
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Board of Governors
of the Federal Reserve System,the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation,
the Office of Thrift Supervision, the Farm Credit Administration, and
the
National Credit Union Administration published in the Federal
Register a joint final rule implementing the Secure and Fair Enforcement
for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008 (SAFE Act) on July 28, 2010. The
rule took effect on October 1, 2010, institutions were expected to
implement appropriate policies, procedures and management systems to
ensure compliance.
REMINDER: At this time there is no licensing action required in the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System (NMLS) of any mortgage loan originator who is an employee of a federally insured depository institution or an owned and controlled subsidiary of such a depository institution that is federally regulated. HOWEVER these loan officers will soon be forced to comply with licensing laws....the final rule further provides that Agency-regulated institutions must: require their employees who act as residential mortgage loan originators to comply with the S.A.F.E. Act’s requirements to register and obtain a unique identifier, and adopt and follow written policies and procedures designed to assure compliance with these requirements. It is expected that these loan originators will have to obtain a unique identifier, and maintain this registration on the NMLS system sometime in early 2011.
While it might seem "sketchy" that some loan officers face tougher testing standards than others, this is not the case. Even before the SAFE Act, loan officers employed by banks, savings associations, credit unions or Farm Credit System (FCS) institutions and certain of their subsidiaries regulated by a Federal banking agency or the FCA, were already required by Federal regulations to pass a series of tests similar to those taken by independent mortgage originators who must alraady comply with NMLS today.
Consumers you can check the licensing status of your mortgage professional HERE
