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NMLS Adds Credit Report Functionality for SAFE Act Compliance

Mortgage originators can now authorize a credit report to be processed through the ""Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry"":http://mortgage.nationwidelicensingsystem.org (NMLS), according to a statement released by the ""Conference of State Bank Supervisors"":http://www.csbs.org (CSBS) this week.
[IMAGE] Beginning November 1, all licensed residential mortgage loan originators participating in NMLS were required to complete the credit authorization process regardless of any prior state requirements.

Providing credit history processing through NMLS fulfills one of the mandates of the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008 (the SAFE Act), which requires individual licensees to provide authorization for NMLS to obtain an independent credit report from a consumer reporting agency. State regulators may use this credit information in making a determination of financial responsibility.

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This process is now automated, so a single credit report can be used by one or more states. NMLS partnered with TransUnion to provide the single-bureau credit report with a Vantage Score.

""[This] announcement once again illustrates the ability of the states to effectively implement the requirements of the SAFE Act and to enhance supervision of the residential mortgage market,"" said Bill Matthews, CSBS SVP and president of the State Regulatory Registry, the subsidiary of CSBS that operates NMLS on behalf of state regulators. ""This functionality continues to raise the professionalism of residential mortgage providers and does much to protect consumers from bad actors.""

According to CSBS, new mortgage loan originator (MLO) license applicants and transitioning applicants are required to authorize a credit report and score with the submission of their license application or transition request.

MLOs who have already filed an application through NMLS will need to authorize a credit report and score through NMLS prior to the deadline(s) imposed by the state(s) in which they are licensed-even if credit information was previously reviewed by a state agency.

The NMLS credit report functionality requires the MLO to pay a $15 fee in addition to completing an identity verification process to authorize the credit report.

About Author: Heather Cernoch

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