Minneapolis, MN: We all know about, and most of us have been effected by the real estate and mortgage industry meltdown. The government agencies, many of which have been created since the meltdown, including the Consumer Financial Protect Bureau (CFPB), come at a significant cost to you for their new “protection” and compliance rules.
The sad thing, is very little within the new rules have actually made a large difference on the street. Rather, most of the rules have done little to correct anything except reduce consumers ability to get loans. The increasingly stringent laws and regulations are affecting the mortgage industry and leading to higher costs and risk for lenders.
A great example of the new laws and costs, yet didn’t hit its mark has to do with the difference between licensing requirements for Loan Officers. If your Loan Officers works at a bank, credit union, or mortgage company owned by a bank or credit union, the Loan Officer has no mandated educational requirements, no state or federal requirements, no continuing education requirements, and simply has to get registers into the National Mortgage Licensing and Registry System (NMLS).
On the other hand, if your Loan Officers works for a non-bank lender, or for a broker, they must complete educational requirements, plus pass both state and federal testing requirements. They are also required to have yearly continuing education.
This means that today, roughly 80% of all Loan Officers are unlicensed, with no mandated testing or education, yet the vast majority of consumers believe all of them have a license.
When getting a mortgage loan, likely the largest financial transaction of your life. If is probably prudent to work with a licensed professional.