What is a Georgia Mortgage Broker, Lender or Loan Originator Bond?
Licensed mortgage brokers and lenders in the state of Georgia are required to purchase a surety bond as an important step to become licensed.
This surety bond is called a mortgage broker bond or a mortgage lender bond depending on the specific license you're applying for.
The bond is a contract guaranteeing you will:
- Follow both Federal and Georgia mortgage lending and broker/origination laws
- Follow the licensing regulations including renewal procedures in Georgia
- Service your customers with fair business practices and ethics
When you purchase your Georgia mortgage broker or lender bond, you're making this promise to the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance and to your customers.
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Who is Required To Purchase a Georgia Mortgage Broker Bond?
Both mortgage brokers and lenders are required to purchase a surety bond:
A mortgage lender is responsible for providing the mortgage loan. In some cases the lender will keep the loan on their books and service the loan. Other times, they will sell the loan to investors.
A mortgage broker, also called a mortgage loan originator, is responsible for connecting the borrower to the right mortgage loan and lender for their budget and needs.
Again, both of these license classifications are required to purchase a mortgage broker bond.
Why is a Georgia Mortgage Bond Required?
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance & Innovation is responsible for setting the licensing requirements for mortgage lenders and mortgage brokers.
The licensing process is required to ensure the business brokering or lending mortgages has the proper:
- Education
- Experience
- And paperwork in place
This clearly prevents bad actors from getting into business for the purpose of committing fraud.
And even with these licensing standards in place, every year there will be a handful of licensed mortgage professionals who purposefully:
- Approve a borrower for a loan they can't afford
- Help a borrower get approved for a loan by providing false information
- Hinder borrowers from getting approved by providing false information
- Pushing borrowers to high commission loans to make more money
- Creating and charging false fees
If a mortgage broker or lender is found guilty of these or similar acts, their customer can make a claim against the bond for financial compensation. The level of reimbursement only extends to the amount of the mortgage bond.
What Are The Georgia Mortgage Broker and Lender Bond Amounts?
| Mortgage License | Bond Amount |
|---|---|
| Mortgage Lenders | $250,000 |
| Mortgage Brokers | $150,000 |
Again, the bond amount is the amount of protection for your customers, but the bond amount will affect the price of your bond.
How Much Does a Georgia Mortgage Broker Bond Cost?
The price of a mortgage broker bond and mortgage lender bond is determined by a rate, quoted from a surety.
A surety is a special insurance company that chooses to underwrite mortgage bonds.
Every surety conducts their own internal assessment of an applicant based on factors such as:
- Personal credit of the individual or business owners
- Mortgage and lending experience
- Prior bond claims if the individual or owner has been licensed in the past
These rates will be different from surety to surety. Finding a lower rate can easily save you hundreds or dollars when purchasing your bond.
And this is why you should work with a specialized surety agency like Surety Bonds Direct to buy your surety bond.
As an agency, we work with multiple A rated sureties allowing us to price shop for you and find the lowest price.
Once you get your pricing, you're under no obligation to purchase. This is free information you can use to plan. Plus all quotes are good for 30 days.
There's no reason to request your free quote right now or call a bond specialist at 1-800-608-9950.
Mortgage Broker Bond Price Examples
Let's look at both $150,000 and the $250,000 bond amounts for mortgage brokers and lenders.
Pay attention to the rates and how one percentage point can make huge difference in the price.
| Bond Amount | Surety Bond Rate | Price You Pay |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | 0.8% | $1,200 |
| $150,000 | 1% | $1,500 |
| $150,000 | 1.5% | $2,250 |
| $150,000 | 2% | $3,000 |
| $150,000 | 3% | $4,500 |
Mortgager Lender Bond Price Examples
| Bond Amount | Surety Bond Rate | Price You Pay |
|---|---|---|
| $250,000 | 0.8% | $2,000 |
| $250,000 | 1% | $2,500 |
| $250,000 | 1.5% | $3,750 |
| $250,000 | 2% | $5,000 |
| $250,000 | 3% | $7,500 |
Example pricing is great, but you can get your exact price with no risk or obligation to purchase within one business day.
Go request your price quote today. Remember, this is free information for you. There's no obligation to purchase. Remember, quotes are good for 30 days.
Request a FREE Price Quote Today
Let us price shop for you and find the lowest possible price. This costs you nothing and there's no obligation to buy once you get pricing.
Need Help? Call Us Today
Talk to a bond specialist today. They will help you find the surety bond you need and get you the lowest possible price. 1-800-608-9950
How To File Your Mortgage Broker or Lender Bond?
After you agree to a price, purchasing your bond is as easy as completing an online checkout form.
The entire mortgage licensing process is managed by the National Multi-State Licensing System (NMLS).
Once your payment is processed, our issuance team will immediately begin the process to issue your bond with the National Multi-State Licensing System.
We provide you with detailed instructions to help us file your bond. The process takes only a few minutes.
How Long Does a Georgia Mortgage Broker and Lender Bond Last?
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance requires an active surety bond on file with the NMLS (National Multi-State Licensing System) to legally conduct business.
Every mortgage broker bond has a bond term or 12 months from the effective date, which is a date you choose when you want the bond to become active.
As your bond's expiration date approaches, you need to renew the bond.
How Do You Renew a Mortgage Broker and Lender Bond?
Renewing a mortgage broker and lender bond is easy. As your bond expiration date approaches, your bond specialist will contact you 30 to 45 days in advance to ensure you don't miss paying the renewal premium.
Your bond specialist will have renewal pricing already quoted allowing this process to get finished with little headache or effort.
All mortgage bonds are continuous. This means once you pay your renewal premium, your bond remains active. You don't have to do anything extra.
Mortgage Bonds And Getting Your Georgia Business License/Registration
Nearly every state uses the NMLS to manage the licensing process for mortgage professionals.
Georgia's process is very straightforward. You can find a good outline of all the steps on the NMLS website. Just select GA from the list.
Here are some of the licensing highlights you should know about.
Select Your Registered Agent
The registered agent is the individual who technically is licensed and covers the mortgage broker employees in the company.
A business entity can be the registered agent, but the business must match the business recorded with the Georgia Secretary of State.
Credit Report for all Owners
All direct or indirect owners with more than a 10% state in the business must submit their credit report and complete the Identity Verification Process through the NMLS.
An indirect owner would be an individual who owns a stake in the business entity getting licensed, through another entity that directly owns the business getting licensed.
If an owner has bad credit, they are allowed to submit a full explanation for every negative aspect on their report.
Criminal Background Check
Owners who own 10% or more of the business entity must submit a background and FBI criminal check.
If there is an owner who has a prior conviction, a license will not be issued. They will first need to obtain a pardon or another remedy according to O.C.G.A. Section 7-1-1004(i), the laws for "curing" a felony charge.
Georgia Secretary of State Documents
All business formation documents need to be submitted when getting licensed.
If you're operating under a trade name, you'll need to make sure it's registered with the Secretary of State and submitted during the licensing process.
If you're an out of state business entity, you will need to submit a Certificate of Authority with the Secretary of State. This "registers" your business with Georgia so you can conduct business.
Outline the Business Structure
You must create a management chart of the business showing all the directors and officers. If your business is large in size, you only need to outline the first 3 "levels" of management from the top down.
If ownership is not present in the management chart you'll need to submit a separate ownership chart. This chart must show all direct and indirect owners of the business getting licensed.
Additional Policies and Paperwork
The following are policies you must submit as you go through the NMLS licensing process.
- Anti-Money Laundering and Bank Secrecy Act Policy
- Cybersecurity policy
- Verification of lawful presence in the US
Additional Georgia Mortgage Bond Resources & Links
Mortgage Broker and Lender Forms and Applications
NMLS Resource Center, State Licensing Requirements for Georgia
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Licensing Requirements for Mortgage Loan Originators
It's simple getting a mortgage originator license right? Not so much. Learn the steps including how to get your surety bond.
Mortgage Broker Bonds & the NMLS
Find out about the NMLS filing process which most often utilizes e-filed bonds instead of traditional printed paper documents.
Can't find what you're looking for? Let us help!
Get Started » or, if you'd prefer, call us at
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