It is important for an Arizona mortgage licensee to periodically review its compliance with Arizona statutes and regulations and be aware of current oral guidance provided by the Arizona Department of Financial Institutions ("AZDFI") as to its interpretations of these statutes and regulations. Furthermore, even when a mortgage licensee has an Arizona compliance quality control plan in place, events can trigger new compliance issues.
By way of example, when every applicant for employment is hired who will work at any location in the country, an analysis must be made as to whether the Arizona mandated background check must completed. When a document preparation company provides a software update, the update must be checked to make sure prior changes made to the documents used in Arizona are still in compliance. When a licensee retains a new lead provider or other vendor, an analysis must be made whether that lead provider or other vendor must be licensed in Arizona to avoid the licensee being cited for engaging in unlicensed activity. A RESPA (Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act) Section 8 analysis must also often be made for lead providers as evidenced by the recent CFPB investigation of Zillow.
Moreover, it is important to be aware of oral guidance provided by the AZDFI and changes in enforcement issues at AZDFI examinations. For example, there have been recent changes in the requirements involving the Arizona background check for applicants for employment and in connection with lead provider licensing. In addition, the scope of social media inquiries has been expanded.
Other events trigger notification and approval requirements. Various events require notification to the AZDFI including a change in, or termination of, the Responsible Individual, changes in office addresses, changes in ownership, officers and directors and name changes. In addition, prior approval of the Superintendent of the AZDFI is required for changes in ownership which meet the definition of a “change in control.”