Mortgage loan professionals desiring to operate in the District must provide a DC mortgage broker bond regardless of whether he or she opts for the broker license, lender license, or a dual license encompassing both authorities. A ‘mortgage broker’ mean any sole proprietor or entity that, for compensation or gain, or in the expectation of compensation or gain, directly or indirectly accepts or offers to accept an application for a mortgage loan, solicits or offers to solicit a mortgage loan on behalf of a borrower, or negotiates or offers to negotiate the terms and conditions of a mortgage loan on behalf of a lender. The DC mortgage broker bond required for this class of license for a NEW entrant is $12,500. A ‘mortgage lender’ is any sole proprietorship or entity that makes a mortgage loan to any person; or engages in the business of servicing mortgage loans for others or collecting or otherwise receiving mortgage loan payments directly from borrowers for distribution to any other person. The DC mortgage lender bond required for this class of licensee for a NEW applicant is $12,500. A ‘mortgage loan originator’ is any person who, on behalf of a District of Columbia mortgage lender, mortgage broker, or mortgage dual authority licensee, takes a residential mortgage application; offers or negotiates terms of a residential mortgage loan; or solicits or offers to solicit a mortgage loan on behalf of a borrower for compensation or gain. The DC mortgage broker bond does NOT apply to this license class.
The basic $12,500 surety bond requirement changes if the broker, lender or dual license holder has legally operated in the District in any of the three (3) calendar years preceding the year in which a new application is filed. If the applicant HAS previously been a license holder then the DC mortgage broker bond amount is dependent on the results of the applicant’s sworn statement detailing the total dollar amount of mortgage loans applied for and accepted or mortgage loans applied for, procured, and accepted by the mortgage lender, mortgage broker, or mortgage dual authority licensee during the latest calendar year that the applicant was in business. The following formula is used to determine the amount of the new license DC mortgage lender bond or broker bond amount:
(a) Where the total dollar amount of stated loans was one million dollars ($1,000,000) or less, the surety bond must be in the amount of twelve thousand five hundred dollars ($12,500);
(b) Where the total dollar amount of stated loans was more than one million dollars ($1,000,000) but not more than two million dollars ($2,000,000), the surety bond must be in the amount of seventeen thousand five hundred dollars ($17,500);
(c) Where the total dollar amount of stated loans was more than two million dollars ($2,000,000) but not more than three million dollars ($3,000,000), the District of Columbia mortgage broker bond must be in the amount of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000);
(d) Where the total dollar amount of stated loans was more than three million ($3,000,000), the surety bond must be in the amount of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
The DC mortgage broker surety bond must be issued by a surety company licensed to do business in the District, be issued in the trade name of the license, and stay in effect continuously so long as the license is in force. Pursuant to DC §1109.2, the obligation must run to the Commissioner of Banking for the benefit of the District and any person who has been damaged by a licensee as a result of violating any law or regulation governing the activities of mortgage loan originators, mortgage lenders, or mortgage brokers. The DC mortgage broker bond must be conditioned upon the applicant complying with all District and federal laws regulating the activities of mortgage lenders, mortgage brokers, and mortgage loan originators and performing all written agreements with borrowers or prospective borrowers, accounting for all funds received by the licensee in conformity with acceptable accounting standards. If an action is initiated against the surety bond the Commission can require the licensee to post another. If a recovery from surety is successful then the licensee must file a new DC mortgage lender bond or broker bond, however the bond language and the Commissioner’s treatment of the same makes the surety bond non-cumulative. The bond is cancelable upon thirty days notice to the Commissioner by certified mail.
National surety leader Surety One, Inc., specializes in the bonding needs of the mortgage lending, brokering and financial services sectors. We can offer both the surety and fidelity bonds required of mortgage professionals in ALL fifty states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Need to know what your state requires? Click here for a state-by-state guide to mortgage broker surety bond requirements. Visit us at SuretyOne.com, call (787) 333-0222 or (800) 373-2804, or email us at Underwriting@SuretyOne.com for a DC mortgage broker bond application or information on ANY bonding need.
