(a) A residential mortgage lender or servicer shall do all of the following:

(1) Maintain staff adequate to meet the requirements of this division, as prescribed by rule or order of the commissioner.

(2) Keep and maintain for 36 months from the date of final entry the business records and other information required by law or rules of the commissioner regarding any mortgage loan made or serviced in the course of the conduct of its business.

(3) File with the commissioner any report required under law or by rule or order of the commissioner.

(4) Disburse funds in accordance with its agreements and to make a good faith and reasonable effort to effect closing in a timely manner.

(5) Account or deliver to a person any personal property such as money, funds, deposit, check, draft, mortgage, other document, or thing of value, that has come into its possession and is not its property, or that it is not in law or equity entitled to retain under the circumstances, at the time that has been agreed upon or is required by law, or, in the absence of a fixed time, upon demand of the person entitled to the accounting or delivery.

(6) File with the commissioner an amendment to its application prior to any material change in the information contained in the application for licensure, including, without limitation, the plan of operation. The commissioner shall, within 20 business days of receiving a completed amendment to the application, or within a longer time if agreed to by the licensee, approve or disapprove the effectiveness of the proposed amendment.

(7) Comply with the provisions of this division, and with any order or rule of the commissioner.

(8) Submit to periodic examination by the commissioner as required by this division.

(9) Advise the commissioner by amendment to its application of any material judgment filed against, or bankruptcy petition filed by, the licensee within five days of the filing.

(10) Notify the commissioner, in writing, prior to opening a branch office in this state or changing its business location or locations or its branch offices from which activities subject to this division are conducted.

(11) Comply with all applicable state and federal tax return filing requirements.

(12) Refrain from employing, or paying a commission or other fee to, a mortgage loan originator who is not licensed in this state, unless the individual is exempt from licensure.

(13) Refrain from committing a crime against the laws of any state or the United States, involving moral turpitude, misrepresentation, fraudulent or dishonest dealing, or fraud, and disclose to the commissioner any final judgment entered against it in a civil action upon grounds or allegations of fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit.

(14) Refrain from engaging in conduct that would be cause for denial of a license.

(15) Remain solvent.

(16) Proceed with due care and competence in performing any act for which it is required to hold a license under this division.

(17) Comply with any other requirement established by rule of the commissioner.

(b) The commissioner may require an applicant to submit a statement agreeing to comply with the requirements of this section.

(Amended by Stats. 2009, Ch. 160, Sec. 54. (SB 36) Effective October 11, 2009.)