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WAC 208-660-008: Exemptions


Published: 2015

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WACs > Title 208 > Chapter 208-660 > Section 208-660-008











208-660-007    

208-660-009







Agency filings affecting this section







WAC 208-660-008









Exemptions.









(1) Who is exempt from all provisions of the act? Any person doing business under the laws of the state of Washington or the United States and any federally insured depository institution doing business under the laws of any other state relating to commercial banks, bank holding companies, savings banks, trust companies, savings and loan associations, credit unions, insurance companies, or real estate investment trusts as defined in 26 U.S.C. Sec. 856 and the affiliates, subsidiaries, and service corporations thereof.
(2) Who is exempt from licensing as a mortgage loan originator?

(a) Any individual who offers or negotiates terms of a residential mortgage loan with or on behalf of an immediate family member of the individual; or
(b) Any individual who offers or negotiates terms of a residential mortgage loan secured by a dwelling that served as the individual's residence.
(3) If I am licensed as an insurance agent under RCW 48.17.060, must I have a separate license to act as a loan originator or mortgage broker? Yes. You will need a separate license as a loan originator or mortgage broker if you are a licensed insurance agent and you do any of the following:
(a) Take a residential mortgage loan application for a mortgage broker;
(b) Offer or negotiate terms of a mortgage loan for direct or indirect compensation or gain, or in the expectation of direct or indirect compensation or gain;
(c) Assist a person in obtaining or applying to obtain a residential mortgage loan, for compensation or gain; or
(d) Hold yourself out as being able to perform any of the above services.
(4) Are insurance companies exempt from the Mortgage Broker Practices Act? Yes. Insurance companies authorized to transact the business of insurance in this state by the Washington state office of the insurance commissioner are exempt from the Mortgage Broker Practices Act.
(5) As an attorney, must I have a mortgage broker or loan originator license to assist a person in obtaining or applying to obtain a residential mortgage loan in the course of my practice?

(a) If you are an attorney licensed in Washington and if the mortgage broker activities are incidental to your professional duties as an attorney, you are exempt from the Mortgage Broker Practices Act under RCW 19.146.020 (1)(c).
(b) Whether an exemption is available to you depends on the facts and circumstances of your particular situation. For example, if you hold yourself out publicly as being able to perform the services of a mortgage broker or loan originator, or if your fee structure for those services is different from the customary fee structure for your professional legal services, the department will consider you to be principally engaged in the mortgage broker business and you will need a mortgage broker or loan originator license before performing those services. A "customary" fee structure for the professional legal service does not include the receipt of compensation or gain associated with assisting a borrower in obtaining a residential mortgage loan on the property.
(6) As a licensed real estate broker or salesperson, must I have a mortgage broker or loan originator license when I assist the purchaser in obtaining financing for a residential mortgage loan involving a bona fide sale of real estate? You are exempt from the act under RCW 19.146.020 (1)(e) if you only receive the customary real estate commission in connection with the transaction. A "customary" real estate commission does not include receipt of compensation or gain associated with the financing of the property. A "customary" real estate commission only includes the agreed upon commission designated in the listing or purchase and sale agreement for the bona fide sale of the subject property.
(7) Are independent contractor loan originators exempt from licensing? No. An independent contractor working as a loan originator must hold a loan originator license.
(8) What other persons or entities are exempt from the Mortgage Broker Practices Act?

(a) Any person doing any act under order of any court except for a person subject to an injunction to comply with any provision of the act or any order of the director issued under the act.
(b) The United States of America, the state of Washington, any other state, and any Washington city, county, or other political subdivision, and any agency, division, or corporate instrumentality of any of these entities in this subsection (b).
(c) Registered mortgage loan originators, or any individual required to be registered, employed by entities exempt from the act.
(d) A manufactured or modular home retailer employee who performs purely administrative or clerical tasks and who receives only the customary salary or commission from the employer in connection with the transaction.
(9) When is a CLI provider exempt from the licensing requirements of the act? A CLI provider is exempt from the licensing requirements of the act:
(a) When the CLI provider meets the general statutory requirements under RCW 19.146.020 (1)(a), (c), (d), or (f); or
(b) When a real estate broker or salesperson licensed in Washington, acting as a CLI provider and a real estate agent, obtains financing for a real estate transaction involving a bona fide sale of real estate and does not receive either:
(i) A separate fee for the CLI service; or
(ii) A sales commission greater than that which would be otherwise customary in connection with the sales transaction; or
(c) When a person, acting as a CLI provider:
(i) Provides only information regarding rates, terms, and lenders;
(ii) Complies with all requirements of subsection (12) of this section;
(iii) Does not represent or imply to a borrower that they are able to obtain a residential mortgage loan from a mortgage broker or lender;
(iv) Does not accept a loan application, assist in the completion of a loan application, or submit a loan application to a mortgage broker or lender on behalf of a borrower;
(v) Does not accept any deposit for third-party provider services or any loan fees from a borrower in connection with a loan, regardless of when the fees are paid;
(vi) Does not negotiate interest rates or terms of a loan with a mortgage broker or lender on behalf of a borrower; and
(vii) Does not provide to the borrower a good faith estimate or other disclosure(s) required of mortgage brokers or lender(s) by state or federal law.
(d) If the CLI provider is not exempt under (a), (b), or (c) of this subsection, the CLI provider is not required to have a mortgage broker license if the CLI provider does not receive any fee or other compensation or gain, directly or indirectly, for performing or facilitating the CLI service.
(10) When is a CLI provider required to have a mortgage broker license?

(a) If a CLI provider, who is not otherwise exempt from the licensing requirements of the act, performs any act that would otherwise require that they be licensed, including accepting a loan application, or submitting a loan application to a mortgage broker or lender, the CLI provider must obtain a mortgage broker or a loan originator license.
(b) Example - License required: A CLI provider uses an internet-based CLI system in which an abbreviated application is available for online completion by borrower. Once the borrower presses "submit," the information collected in the abbreviated application is forwarded to lender. The information contains the borrower's name, Social Security number, contact information, purpose of the loan sought (e.g., purchase, refinance, home equity, second mortgage), size of loan requested, annual salary, and a self-declaration of total unsecured debt. The electronic entries made by the borrower are then used by lender to electronically populate "form fields" and to initiate lender's loan application. A loan originator for the lender then follows up with borrower to complete the loan application. On or after closing, CLI provider receives a CLI service fee.
(c) Example - License not required: A CLI provider uses an internet-based CLI system in which various interactive informational tools are present, including an online "prequalification" tool. Based upon borrower's self-declared data input, borrower receives an indication of borrower's "maximum affordable loan amount," based upon standard norms of debt-to-income ratio and loan-to-value ratio, and also subject to verification of information, availability and suitability of loan products, and independent underwriting by any lender. The borrower indicates a desire for follow-up from one or more lenders by inputting personal contact information and pressing "submit." A number of lenders receive only the personal identity information of borrower and not any financial information. However, the CLI system has been programmed (and may be continuously reprogrammed) to route personal contact information to certain lenders based upon borrower's "prequalification" data input and the lending criteria of each of the lenders for whom CLI provider has a relationship. None of borrower's self-declared financial information is actually submitted to any of the lenders whose criteria match borrower's profile. Loan originators from lender A and lender B initiate contact with borrower based solely on borrower's contact information. Lender A and lender B, through their assigned loan originators, contact borrower with the object of beginning and hopefully completing a loan application. In this example, CLI provider has not taken a loan application.
(11) Must the CLI provider provide any disclosures?

(a) Yes. If a borrower using or accessing the CLI services pays for the CLI service, either directly or indirectly, the CLI provider must give the following disclosure:
(i) The amount of the fee the CLI provider charges the borrower for the service;
(ii) That the use of the CLI system is not required to obtain a residential mortgage loan; and
(iii) That the full range of loans available may not be listed on the CLI system, and different terms and conditions, including lower rates, may be available from others not listed on the system.
(b) Each CLI provider must give the borrower a copy of the disclosure form when the first CLI service is provided to the borrower. The form must be signed and dated by the borrower and a copy maintained as part of the CLI provider's books and records for at least two years.
(12) Are CLI system providers subject to enforcement under the act? Yes. CLI system providers are responsible for any violations of the act and will be subject to any applicable fines or penalties.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 43.320.040, 19.146.223, and 2009 c 528. WSR 09-24-091, § 208-660-008, filed 12/1/09, effective 1/1/10. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.320.040, 19.144.070, 2008 c 109. WSR 09-01-156, § 208-660-008, filed 12/23/08, effective 1/23/09. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.320.040, 19.146.223. WSR 08-11-103, § 208-660-008, filed 5/20/08, effective 6/20/08; WSR 08-05-126, § 208-660-008, filed 2/20/08, effective 3/22/08. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.320.040, 19.146.223, 2006 c 19. WSR 06-23-137, § 208-660-008, filed 11/21/06, effective 1/1/07.]