(a) At the time the finder receives or processes an application for a program loan, the finder shall provide the following statement to the applicant, on behalf of the licensee, in no smaller than 10-point type, and shall ask the applicant to acknowledge receipt of the statement in writing:
“Your loan application has been referred to us by [Name of Finder]. We may pay a fee to [Name of Finder] for the successful referral of your loan application. IF YOU ARE APPROVED FOR THE LOAN, [NAME OF LICENSEE] WILL BECOME YOUR LENDER, AND YOU WILL BE BUILDING A RELATIONSHIP WITH [NAME OF LICENSEE]. If you have any questions about your loan, now or in the future, you should direct those questions to [name of licensee] by [insert at least two different ways in which a borrower may contact the licensee]. If you wish to report a complaint about [Name of Finder] or [Name of Licensee] regarding this loan transaction, you may contact the Department of Business Oversight at 866-275-2677, or file your complaint online at www.dbo.ca.gov.”
(b) If the loan applicant has questions about the loan that the finder is not permitted to answer, the finder shall make a good faith effort to assist the applicant in making direct contact with the lender before the loan is consummated. This good faith effort shall, at a minimum, consist of assisting the applicant in communicating with the licensee as soon as reasonably practicable, which shall at a minimum include a “two-way communication.” For purposes of this section, “two-way communication” includes telephone, electronic mail, or another form of communication that allows the applicant to communicate with the licensee.
(c) Using the policies developed pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 22370, the licensee shall ensure that a loan is not consummated until the licensee has completed a “two-way communication” with the applicant. Sending a voicemail or electronic message to the applicant, without a prior or subsequent response from the applicant, shall not constitute a “two-way communication.”
(d) If the loan is consummated, the licensee shall provide the borrower a written copy of the disclosure notice within two weeks following the date of the loan consummation. A licensee may include the disclosure within its loan contract, or may provide it as a separate document to the borrower, via any means acceptable to the borrower.
(Amended by Stats. 2015, Ch. 505, Sec. 3. (SB 235) Effective January 1, 2016. Repealed as of January 1, 2023, pursuant to Section 22381.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018