Texas Regulation Updates

Office Requirements

A mortgage company must obtain a license for any office constituting the main office or a branch office of the mortgage company. A mortgage company must also obtain a license for any office or location it advertises or promotes to the general public as an office or location at which the mortgage company’s sponsored originators meet in-person with mortgage applicants or prospective mortgage applicants. A licensed office of the mortgage company must be a physical office and have a permanent physical or street address (a post office box or other similar arrangement is not sufficient). The main office or a branch office must be established by the mortgage company. A sponsored originator cannot establish his or her own office other than an office or location from which he or she performs remote work as provided by subsection TAC RULE §80.206 (c) Authorization for Remote Work.

Authorization for Remote Work and Remote Work Policy

With respect to remote work, the employees and sponsored residential mortgage loan originators of a mortgage banker or mortgage company to work remotely so long as the mortgage banker or mortgage company:

1. maintains appropriate safeguards for its consumer data, information, and records, including the use of secure virtual private networks and data storage encryption (including cloud storage) where appropriate;
2. employs appropriate risk-based monitoring and oversight processes for work performed remotely and maintains records of those processes;
3. ensures that physical records containing consumer information are not maintained at a remote location and any electronic records containing consumer information located at or accessible from the remote location are secured;
4. ensures that consumer information and records of the mortgage banker or mortgage company are accessible and available to the Department’s Commissioner;
5. provides appropriate training to its employees and sponsored originators to ensure that remote employees or sponsored originators work in an environment conducive and appropriate to consumer privacy; and
6. adopts, maintains, and follows written procedures to ensure that:
   • its employees and sponsored originators comply with the rule; and
   • its employees and sponsored originators do not perform an activity from a remote location that would be prohibited if performed at an office location required to be licensed by or registered with the Department.

TAC RULE §80.206