Montana passed a bill enacting net worth requirements for mortgage lenders and servicers licensed under the Mortgage Act (Act). Under the bill, mortgage lenders must maintain a net worth of $250,000 and must submit evidence of compliance with the net worth requirement. Mortgage servicers that operate as an approved servicer by a government sponsored enterprise (GSE) must maintain the liquidity, operating reserves, and tangible net worth required by the GSE. If the mortgage servicer is approved by more than one GSE, the mortgage servicer must meet the highest standard of the GSEs for which the mortgage servicer is approved. Mortgage servicers with a portfolio of only non-GSE loans must maintain: a minimum tangible net worth of $1 million or a $1 million surety bond; and liquidity (including operating reserves) of 0.00035 times the unpaid principal balance of the portfolio. The bill also amended surety bond requirements for mortgage servicers licensed under the Act. Mortgage servicers must now maintain a surety bond in an amount based on the mortgage servicer’s total unpaid principal balance of residential mortgage loans (rather than a flat $100,000 surety bond). In addition, the bill amended requirements under the Act with respect to designated managers, financial reports, and transfer of servicing. The bill becomes effective October 1, 2019.
See the Montana Legislature website for the full text of the Statutes:https://leg.mt.gov/bills/2019/billpdf/HB0107.pdf
