California is the state with the largest population and some of the highest housing prices in the country in its different markets. That combination is the reason that I recommend getting a mortgage broker license from California to all of my clients. Even the clients located in the east coast states are willing to work with the time zone difference in order to get the business from California borrowers.
California offers two different licenses for brokers and two possible licenses for lenders but the one that most of my clients can qualify for is the Finance Lender Law License. The application lets you get a license that permits you to lend, broker, or do both.
The requirements are fairly straight-forward. You don't need a physical office in California, nor is there any pre-licensing education or testing requirement. Just have $25,000 in net worth, a $25,000 surety bond, fingerprints, and complete the application.
The quirky thing about the California Finance Lender Law License is that if you are a broker, you must broker only to lenders who have the Finance Lender Law License. This means you cannot broker to banks, savings and loans, and credit unions. A mortgage broker must make sure that the company that they are brokering to does have the Finance Lender Law license (ask your account executive and double-check by checking the database on the California Department of Corporation's web site).
The real estate broker license from the Department of Real Estate also lets you be a mortgage broker. But, for out-of-state mortgage lenders and brokers, the Finance Lender Law License is the way to go.
How long will it take? Unfortunately, California is not one of the quicker ones - plan on 6 months to get your license.
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