2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE SEVEN - Banking (§§ 1 — 3116) › PART VII - Other Financial Institutions (§§ 3001-3012 — 3116) › Subchapter III - Mortgage Lending Buisness (§§ 3053 — 3053i) › § 3053f - Prohibitions

(a) No person, licensee, member of the board of directors, member of the committees, executive officer, official, employee, or agent of the licensee may:
(1) Falsely or deceitfully advertise, display, distribute, or radio broadcast or allow the advertisement, display, distribution or radio broadcasting of any information on the types, rates, or terms and conditions of mortgage loans. If the types, rates, or terms and conditions are published in the advertisements, they shall comply with the applicable laws and state and federal regulations;
(2) make promises to clients with the intent to persuade them to do business, knowing or with good reason to believe that said promise cannot be kept;
(3) use misrepresentation in order to induce or persuade a person to conduct a business transaction;
(4) act in representation of more than one party in a transaction without the express consent of all the parties;
(5) unduly retain, unless otherwise agreed upon, any amount of money or document pertaining to a transaction, or fail to inform a client of his/her right or of any amount of money or document that is part of a transaction;
(6) induce a party into a transaction to terminate a contract and enter into a new one when the objective of such new contract is to obtain personal gain or benefit the mortgage institution;
(7) commit misappropriation or embezzlement of the funds under his/her custody;
(8) falsify or cause any person to falsify documents that are part of a transaction;
(9) offer and mortgage a nonexistent property or offer and mortgage a property without the consent of the owner thereof or when the deed of the property is not clearly established;
(10) charge a double commission, one to the seller and another to the buyer of a property with funds acquired through mortgage loans when this has not been expressly agreed on by the parties;
(11) deposit clients’ funds together with his/her own funds;
(12) refuse to reimburse any deposit, after deducting a reasonable sum for the expenditures incurred when the contemplated transaction is conducted;
(13) charge fees that could be considered excessive to keep money in escrow accounts with the sole purpose of affording the lender greater protection in the mortgage loan;
(14) fail to provide clients with a substantially accurate itemization of the costs of the mortgage loan or loans at least twenty-four (24) hours before the granting thereof, when the client so requires;
(15) refuse to provide any registration, documents, or information under his/her custody with regard to transactions involving real property that the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions wishes to examine;
(16) fail to keep an accounting system that clearly shows all transactions in such a way that enables the Commissioner to conduct the investigations he/she deems necessary;
(17) allow or induce a client to sign a blank loan application or have the same available in a place other than the site of the authorized business, so as to be subsequently completed by the broker or the mortgage institution;
(18) submit, publish, or make false reports or entries with the intent to deceit or defraud any person or agent authorized by the Commissioner to evaluate the business of the mortgage institution;
(19) be involved in illegal or unfair competition practices.
(b) Likewise, any person who takes part, incites, or cooperates in the commission of the acts listed herein shall commit a violation, regardless of whether the person obtained personal gain or not.
History —Dec. 30, 2010, No. 247, § 3.7, eff. 120 days after Dec. 30, 2010.