Haydn Richards and Bob Niemi Quoted in MBA NewsLink on New MBA Licensing Flexibility Campaign

Haydn Richards and Bob Niemi were quoted in MBA NewsLink on the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) new licensing flexibility campaign. MBA is partnering with states and local associations to update state law and rules to provide mortgage loan originators (MLO) and their state licensed employers greater flexibility for remote location work arrangements during—and especially beyond—the coronavirus pandemic. MBA has released proposed model state legislation and regulation to apply the lessons of the pandemic and make these flexibilities permanent.

“We need to turn lemons into lemonade,” Richards said. “The MBA model bill and rule [referenced above] basically allows MLOs to work from wherever they are, as long as there are appropriate supervisory measures in place. We didn’t want to limit remote locations to the home; some MLOs could be elsewhere, such as at a family member’s residence, so we allow that provided all consumer and data protection requirements are maintained.”

Niemi added that the pandemic has turned the concept of “branch licensing” on its head.

“Branch licensing is not a new discussion, and it limits credit by limiting the distance in which people can work and prevents them from more broadly serving customers,” he said. “We also have to move the business from a physical business to a digital business.”

The original announcement "MBA Launches Licensing Flexibility Campaign with State Partners," was published in MBA NewsLink on February 16, 2021.