license. The Administrator of Consumer Credit shall not issue a mortgage lender license unless the Administrator makes at a minimum the following findings: 1. The applicant or any owner, officer, director or partner has never had a mortgage lender, mortgage broker or mortgage loan originator license revoked in any governmental jurisdiction, except that a subsequent formal vacation of such revocation shall not be deemed a revocation; 2. Any owner, officer, director or partner of the applicant has not been convicted of, or pled guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony crime that substantially relates to the occupation of a mortgage lender and poses a reasonable threat to public safety in a domestic, foreign or military court: a. during the seven-year period preceding the date of the application for licensing and registration, or b. at any time preceding such date of application, if such felony involved an act of fraud, dishonesty, a breach of trust or money laundering. Provided, that any pardon of a conviction shall not be a conviction for purposes of this paragraph; 3. The applicant and the applicant’s owners, officers, directors or partners have demonstrated financial responsibility and general fitness such as to command the confidence of the community and to warrant a determination that the mortgage lender will operate honestly, fairly and efficiently within the purposes of the Oklahoma Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act. For purposes of this paragraph, an applicant’s owners, officers, directors or partners have shown they are not financially responsible when they have shown a disregard in the management of their own financial condition. A determination that an owner, officer, director or partner has not shown financial responsibility may include, but not be limited to: a. current outstanding judgments, except judgments solely as a result of medical expenses, b. current outstanding tax liens or other government liens and filings, c. foreclosures within the past three (3) years, or d. a pattern of seriously delinquent accounts within the past three (3) years; 4. The applicant has filed a bond in the amount of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00) securing the applicant’s or licensee’s faithful performance of all duties and obligations of a licensee. The bond shall meet the following requirements: a. the bond shall be in a form acceptable to the Administrator, b. the bond shall be issued by an insurance company authorized to conduct business in this state, c. the bond shall be payable to the Department of Consumer Credit, d. the bond is continuous in nature and shall be maintained at all times as a condition of licensure, e. the bond may not be terminated without thirty (30) days’ prior written notice to the Administrator and approval of the Administrator, f. the bond shall be available for the recovery of expenses, civil penalties and fees assessed pursuant to the Oklahoma Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act and for losses or damages which are determined by the Administrator to have been incurred by any borrower or consumer as a result of the applicant’s or licensee’s failure to comply with the requirements of the Oklahoma Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act, g. when an action is commenced on a licensee’s bond, the Administrator may require the filing of a new bond, and h. whenever the principal sum of the bond is reduced by one or more recoveries or payments thereon, the licensee shall furnish a new or additional bond so that the total or aggregate principal sum of such bond or such bonds shall equal One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00) or shall furnish an endorsement duly executed by the corporate surety reinstating the bond to the required principal sum; 5. The applicant has a net worth of at least Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) as reflected by an audited financial statement prepared by a certified public accountant in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles that is accompanied by an opinion acceptable to the Administrator and is dated within fifteen (15) months of the date of application; 6. The applicant has paid all required fees for issuance of the license. The license fees for a mortgage lender shall be in the same amount as license fees applicable to a mortgage broker; 7. Each mortgage lender applicant shall designate and maintain a principal place of business for the transaction of business. If the mortgage lender applicant engages in activity that satisfies the definition of a mortgage broker, the mortgage lender shall designate a licensed mortgage loan originator to oversee the mortgage loan origination operations of the principal place of business and any branch office location where the mortgage lender applicant engages in activity that satisfies the definition of a mortgage broker. If an applicant wishes to maintain one or more branch offices for the transaction of business in addition to a principal place of business, the applicant shall first register the branch office location with the Administrator. The applicant shall submit a fee as set forth in paragraph 8 of subsection K of Section 2095.6 of this title for each branch office registered. If the address of the principal place of business or of any branch office is changed, the licensee shall immediately notify the Administrator of the change and the Administrator shall endorse the change of address on the license for a fee as prescribed in paragraph 9 of subsection K of Section 2095.6 of this title; and 8. A separate mortgage broker license is not required for a mortgage lender that engages in activity that satisfies the definition of a mortgage broker as provided in the Oklahoma Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act. A mortgage lender that engages in activity that satisfies the definition of a mortgage broker shall comply with all requirements of the Oklahoma Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act regarding mortgage brokers. Added by Laws 2013, c. 98, § 6, eff. Nov. 1, 2013. Amended by Laws 2019, c. 363, § 71, eff. Nov. 1, 2019; Laws 2024, c. 218, § 10, eff. Nov. 1, 2024.
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