45A-4. Duty of settlement agent.

(a) The settlement agent shall cause recordation of the deed, if any, the deed of trust or mortgage, or other loan documents required to be recorded at settlement. The settlement agent shall not disburse any of the closing funds prior to verification that the closing funds used to fund disbursement are deposited in the settlement agent's trust or escrow account in one or more forms prescribed by this Chapter. A settlement agent may disburse funds from the settlement agent's trust or escrow account (to either the applicable register of deeds or directly to a private company authorized to electronically record documents with the office of the register of deeds) as necessary to record any deeds, deeds of trust, and any other documents required to be filed in connection with the closing, including excise tax (revenue stamps) and recording fees, but the settlement agent may not disburse any other funds from its trust or escrow account until the deeds, deeds of trust, and other required loan documents have been recorded in the office of the register of deeds. Unless otherwise provided in this Chapter, a settlement agent shall not cause a disbursement of settlement proceeds unless those settlement proceeds are collected funds. Notwithstanding that a deposit made by a settlement agent to its trust or escrow account does not constitute collected funds, the settlement agent may cause a disbursement of settlement proceeds from its trust or escrow account in reliance on that deposit if the deposit is in one or more of the following forms:

(1) A certified check;

(2) A check issued by the State, the United States, a political subdivision of the State, or an agency or instrumentality of the United States, including an agricultural credit association;

(3) A cashier's check, teller's check, or official bank check drawn on or issued by a financial institution insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or a comparable agency of the federal or state government;

(4) A check drawn on the trust account of an attorney licensed to practice in the State of North Carolina;

(5) A check or checks drawn on the trust or escrow account of a real estate broker licensed under Chapter 93A of the General Statutes;

(6) A personal or commercial check or checks in an aggregate amount not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000) per closing if the settlement agent making the deposit has reasonable and prudent grounds to believe that the deposit will be irrevocably credited to the settlement agent's trust or escrow account;

(7) A check drawn on the account of or issued by a mortgage banker licensed under Article 19A of Chapter 53 of the General Statutes that has posted with the Commissioner of Banks a surety bond in the amount of at least three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000). The surety bond shall be in a form satisfactory to the Commissioner and shall run to the State for the benefit of any settlement agent with a claim against the licensee for a dishonored check.

(b) If the settlement agent receives information from the lender as provided in G.S. 45A-5(b) or otherwise has actual knowledge that a mortgage broker or other person acted as a mortgage broker in the origination of the loan, the settlement agent shall place an entry on page 1 of the deed of trust showing the name of the mortgage broker or other person who acted as a mortgage broker in the origination of the loan. Information pertaining to the identity of the mortgage broker or other person who acted as a mortgage broker in the origination of the loan shall not be considered confidential information. The terms "mortgage broker" and "act as a mortgage broker" shall have the same meaning as provided in G.S. 53-243.01.