The Florida Senate

A mortgage lender that makes mortgage loans on real estate in this state shall transact business from a principal place of business. Each principal place of business and each branch office shall be operated under the full charge, control, and supervision of the licensee pursuant to this part.

A license issued under this part is not transferable or assignable.

A mortgage lender shall report, on a form prescribed by rule of the commission, any change in the information contained in any initial application form, or any amendment thereto, within 30 days after the change is effective.

A mortgage lender shall report any changes in the principal loan originator, any addition or subtraction of a control person, or any change in the form of business organization by written amendment in such form and at such time that the commission specifies by rule. Any addition of a control person who has not previously filed a Uniform Mortgage Biographical Statement & Consent Form, MU2, or has not previously complied with the fingerprinting and credit report requirements of s. 494.00611 is subject to the provisions of this section. If, after the addition of a control person, the office determines that the licensee does not continue to meet licensure requirements, the office may bring administrative action in accordance with s. 494.00255 to enforce this section.

Each mortgage lender shall report in a form prescribed by rule of the commission any indictment, information, charge, conviction, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere, regardless of adjudication, to any felony or any crime or administrative violation that involves fraud, dishonesty, breach of trust, money laundering, or any other act of moral turpitude, in any jurisdiction, by the licensee or any principal officer, director, or ultimate equitable owner of 10 percent or more of the licensed corporation, within 30 business days after the indictment, information, charge, conviction, or final administrative action.

Each mortgage lender shall report any action in bankruptcy, voluntary or involuntary, to the office, within 30 business days after the action is instituted.

Each mortgage lender shall designate a registered agent in this state for service of process.

Each mortgage lender shall provide an applicant for a mortgage loan a good faith estimate of the costs the applicant can reasonably expect to pay in obtaining a mortgage loan. The good faith estimate of costs must be mailed or delivered to the applicant within 3 business days after the licensee receives a written loan application from the applicant. The estimate of costs may be provided to the applicant by a person other than the licensee making the loan. The good faith estimate must identify the recipient of all payments charged to the borrower and, except for all fees to be received by the mortgage broker and the mortgage lender, may be disclosed in generic terms, such as, but not limited to, paid to appraiser, officials, title company, or any other third-party service provider. The licensee bears the burden of proving such disclosures were provided to the borrower. The commission may adopt rules that set forth the disclosure requirements of this section.

The disclosures in this subsection must be furnished in writing at the time an adjustable rate mortgage loan is offered to the borrower and whenever the terms of the adjustable rate mortgage loan offered have a material change prior to closing. The lender shall furnish the disclosures relating to adjustable rate mortgages in a format prescribed by ss. 226.18 and 226.19 of Regulation Z of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, as amended; its commentary, as amended; and the federal Truth in Lending Act, 15 U.S.C. ss. 1601 et seq., as amended; together with the Consumer Handbook on Adjustable Rate Mortgages, as amended; published by the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. The licensee bears the burden of proving such disclosures were provided to the borrower.

In every mortgage loan transaction, each mortgage lender shall notify a borrower of any material changes in the terms of a mortgage loan previously offered to the borrower within 3 business days after being made aware of such changes by the lender but at least 3 business days before signing the settlement or closing statement. The licensee bears the burden of proving such notification was provided and accepted by the borrower. A borrower may waive the right to receive notice of a material change if the borrower determines that the extension of credit is needed to meet a bona fide personal financial emergency and the right to receive notice would delay the closing of the mortgage loan. The imminent sale of the borrower’s home at foreclosure during the 3-day period before the signing of the settlement or closing statement constitutes an example of a bona fide personal financial emergency. In order to waive the borrower’s right to receive notice, the borrower must provide the licensee with a dated written statement that describes the personal financial emergency, waives the right to receive the notice, bears the borrower’s signature, and is not on a printed form prepared by the licensee for the purpose of such a waiver.

A mortgage lender may close loans in its own name but may not service the loan for more than 4 months unless the lender has a servicing endorsement. Only a mortgage lender who continuously maintains a net worth of at least $250,000 may obtain a servicing endorsement.

A mortgage lender must report to the office the failure to meet the applicable net worth requirements of s. 494.00611 within 2 days after the mortgage lender’s knowledge of such failure or after the mortgage lender should have known of such failure.