Licensing Overview

The Mortgage Lending Act ("MLA" as codified in NCGS Chapter 53, Article 19A) requires that the NC Commissioner of Banks ("NCCOB") license any person engaged in the business of making or brokering residential mortgage loans. Persons or entities that must be licensed include:

• Mortgage Lenders, which includes all mortgage makers, except Mortgage Brokers who Table-Fund;
  
  
• Mortgage Brokers; and
  
  
• Loan Officers or Limited Loan Officers*.
  
  

Under exemption provisions of the MLA, certain mortgage lenders, brokers and their loan officers are not required to be licensed. Generally, this includes banks, thrifts, credit unions, their wholly-owned subsidiaries and their loan officers. Employees of exempt entities are not required to file to claim an exemption individually.

Before applying for a Uniform Individual Mortgage Application and Consent Form, an individual must have:

• Completed a Mortgage Lending Fundamentals course approved by the NCCOB, within the three-year period immediately preceding the date of the application; and
  
  
• Passed the NC Mortgage Loan Officer Test at an official testing center.
  
  

Loan Officers and Limited Loan Officers can check on the status of their application/license online by using the licensee search.

Background Investigations

Applicants are subject to investigations of their criminal, civil, educational, employment/business and credit histories. Applicants must obtain a fingerprint card from the NCCOB, take it to a local law enforcement agency to have their fingerprints made. Applicants submit the fingerprint card with their fingerprints on it and the form (Authority for Release of Information) consenting to a state and national criminal history record check once application has been made (online or manually). Providing your social security number is mandatory and authorized under the provisions of NCGS Chapter 53 in order to conduct these investigations.

Sample Fingerprint Card
Fingerprint Card Instructions

Filing Fees

Our agency is currently working with the Conference of State Banking Supervisors and the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators in development of a national mortgage license system for the residential mortgage industry. In order to transition to the new national mortgage licensing system, our agency will start issuing an 18 month license instead of the traditional 12 month license until we are on the same renewal period as the national system. Any applications that are approved after May 1, 2007 will have an expiration date of December 31, 2008; as such, the application fee has been adjusted for this change and is noted in the instructions below.

The initial license fee for a Loan Officer is Sixty-Seven Dollars and Fifty cents ($67.50) for any portion of a License year ending December 31, 2008; plus the $46 fee to cover the cost of obtaining a credit report and conducting a criminal history check. These fees must be paid via money order or cashier's check made payable to the Department of Commerce/Banking Commission or with a debit/credit card  or ACH payment when applying online. All fees are non-refundable.