Neb. Rev. Stat. § 45-737 — NE Code / Chapter 45 / Section 45-737
45-737
Status: in_force

A licensee licensed as a mortgage banker shall:

(1) Disburse required funds paid by the borrower and held in escrow for the payment of insurance payments no later than the date upon which the premium is due under the insurance policy;

(2) Disburse funds paid by the borrower and held in escrow for the payment of real estate taxes prior to the time such real estate taxes become delinquent;

(3) Pay any penalty incurred by the borrower because of the failure of the licensee to make the payments required in subdivisions (1) and (2) of this section unless the licensee establishes that the failure to timely make the payments was due solely to the fact that the borrower was sent a written notice of the amount due more than fifteen calendar days before the due date to the borrower's last-known address and failed to timely remit the amount due to the licensee;

(4) At least annually perform a complete escrow analysis. If there is a change in the amount of the periodic payments, the licensee shall mail written notice of such change to the borrower at least twenty calendar days before the effective date of the change in payment. The following information shall be provided to the borrower, without charge, in one or more reports, at least annually:

(a) The name and address of the licensee;

(b) The name and address of the borrower;

(c) A summary of the escrow account activity during the year which includes all of the following:

(i) The balance of the escrow account at the beginning of the year;

(ii) The aggregate amount of deposits to the escrow account during the year; and

(iii) The aggregate amount of withdrawals from the escrow account for each of the following categories:

(A) Payments applied to loan principal;

(B) Payments applied to interest;

(C) Payments applied to real estate taxes;

(D) Payments for real property insurance premiums; and

(E) All other withdrawals; and

(d) A summary of loan principal for the year as follows:

(i) The amount of principal outstanding at the beginning of the year;

(ii) The aggregate amount of payments applied to principal during the year; and

(iii) The amount of principal outstanding at the end of the year;

(5) Establish and maintain a toll-free telephone number or accept collect telephone calls to respond to inquiries from borrowers, if the licensee services residential mortgage loans. If a licensee ceases to service residential mortgage loans, it shall continue to maintain a toll-free telephone number or accept collect telephone calls to respond to inquiries from borrowers for a period of twelve months after the date the licensee ceased to service residential mortgage loans. A telephonic messaging service which does not permit the borrower an option of personal contact with an employee, agent, or contractor of the licensee shall not satisfy the conditions of this section. Each day such licensee fails to comply with this subdivision shall constitute a separate violation of the Residential Mortgage Licensing Act;

(6) Answer in writing, within seven business days after receipt, any written request for payoff information received from a borrower or a borrower's designated representative. This service shall be provided without charge to the borrower, except that when such information is provided upon request within sixty days after the fulfillment of a previous request, a processing fee of up to ten dollars may be charged;

(7) Record or cause to be recorded a release of mortgage pursuant to the provisions of section 76-2803 or, in the case of a trust deed, record or cause to be recorded a reconveyance pursuant to the provisions of section 76-2803 ;

(8) Maintain a copy of all documents and records relating to each residential mortgage loan and application for a residential mortgage loan, including, but not limited to, loan applications, federal Truth in Lending Act statements, good faith estimates, appraisals, notes, rights of rescission, and mortgages or trust deeds for a period of five years after the date the residential mortgage loan is funded or the loan application is denied or withdrawn;

(9) Notify the director in writing or through the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry within three business days after the occurrence of any of the following:

(a) The filing of a voluntary petition in bankruptcy by the licensee or notice of a filing of an involuntary petition in bankruptcy against the licensee;

(b) The licensee has lost the ability to fund a loan or loans after it had made a loan commitment or commitments and approved a loan application or applications;

(c) Any other state or jurisdiction institutes license denial, cease and desist, suspension, or revocation procedures against the licensee;

(d) The attorney general of any state, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or the Federal Trade Commission initiates an action to enforce consumer protection laws against the licensee or any of the licensee's officers, directors, shareholders, partners, members, employees, or agents;

(e) The Federal National Mortgage Association, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, Federal Housing Administration, or Government National Mortgage Association suspends or terminates the licensee's status as an approved seller or seller and servicer;

(f) The filing of a criminal indictment or information against the licensee or any of its officers, directors, shareholders, partners, members, employees, or agents;

(g) The licensee or any of the licensee's officers, directors, shareholders, partners, members, employees, or agents was convicted of, pleaded guilty to, or was found guilty after a plea of nolo contendere to (i) a misdemeanor under state or federal law which involves dishonesty or fraud or which involves any aspect of the mortgage banking business, depository institution business, or installment loan company business or (ii) any felony under state or federal law; or

(h)(i) Except as provided in subdivisions (9)(h)(ii) and (iii) of this section, a licensee shall notify the director in writing or through the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry within three business days from the time that the licensee becomes aware of any breach of security of the system of computerized data owned or licensed by the licensee, which contains personal information about a Nebraska resident, or the unauthorized access to or use of such information about a Nebraska resident as a result of the breach.

(ii) If a licensee would be required under Nebraska law to provide notification to a Nebraska resident regarding such incident, then the licensee shall provide a copy of such notification to the department prior to or simultaneously with the licensee's notification to the Nebraska resident.

(iii) Notice required by subdivision (9)(h) of this section may be delayed if a law enforcement agency determines that the notice will impede a criminal investigation. Notice shall be made in good faith, without unreasonable delay, and as soon as possible after the law enforcement agency determines that notification will no longer impede the investigation.

(iv) For purposes of subdivision (9)(h) of this section, the terms breach of the security of the system and personal information have the same meaning as in section 87-802 ; and

(10) Notify the director in writing or through the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry within thirty days after the occurrence of a material development other than as described in subdivision (9) of this section, including, but not limited to, any of the following:

(a) Business reorganization;

(b) A change of name, trade name, doing business as designation, or main office address;

(c) The establishment of a branch office. Notice of such establishment shall be on a form prescribed by the department and accompanied by a fee of seventy-five dollars for each branch office;

(d) The relocation or closing of a branch office; or

(e) The entry of an order against the licensee or any of the licensee's officers, directors, shareholders, partners, members, employees, or agents, including orders to which the licensee or other parties consented, by any other state or federal regulator.

Laws 1989, LB 272, § 14;

Laws 1994, LB 1275, § 4;

Laws 1995, LB 163, § 6;

Laws 1995, LB 396, § 1;

Laws 1996, LB 1053, § 11;

Laws 2003, LB 218, § 8;

Laws 2005, LB 533, § 55;

Laws 2007, LB124, § 46;

R.S.Supp.,2008, § 45-711;

Laws 2009, LB328, § 22;

Laws 2010, LB892, § 14;

Laws 2013, LB290, § 4;

Laws 2015, LB352, § 2;

Laws 2018, LB750, § 1;

Laws 2019, LB355, § 10;

Laws 2024, LB1074, § 83.