Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

Chapter 184 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 17C the following section:-

Section 17D. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings:

"Commissioner", the commissioner of banks.

"Date of application", the date upon which a signed mortgage application together with payment of the required application fees are received by the first mortgage lender.

"First mortgage lender", any person, including individuals, corporations, associations, partnerships and trusts engaged in the business of making loans secured by first mortgages to finance the acquisition or initial construction of a dwelling or to refinance an existing first mortgage loan on residential property located in the commonwealth of four units or less occupied or to be occupied in whole or in part by the mortgagor.

"Mortgage borrower", any applicant(s), either individually or jointly, for a loan to finance the acquisition or initial construction of a dwelling, or for a loan to refinance an existing first mortgage loan by giving to a first mortgage lender an interest in residential property located in the commonwealth of four units or less occupied or to be occupied in whole or in part by the mortgagor.

(b) A first mortgage lender shall provide, upon written or oral request by a prospective mortgage borrower for such information, a good faith estimate, expressed as either a dollar amount or a percentage of the total amount of the prospective loan, of all charges for "settlement services", as that term is defined in 12 of the USC 2602, which the mortgage borrower is likely to incur. Upon request by a prospective mortgage borrower, the first mortgage lender shall also provide any or all of the written materials described in paragraph (c).

(c) Unless previously provided to a prospective mortgage borrower in accordance with paragraph (b), a first mortgage lender shall provide the following information to a prospective mortgage borrower at the same time such lender first provides a first mortgage loan application form to any such borrower:

(1) a uniform one-page worksheet prescribed in regulations promulgated by the commissioner, written in plain and simple language, and including relevant examples, where necessary, which would allow such borrower to calculate easily through simple arithmetic all the charges and fees that such borrower is likely to incur in securing such mortgage from the first mortgage lender. The said worksheet shall commence with the following statement, printed in no smaller than ten-point boldface type: "CLOSING AND SETTLEMENT COSTS MAY VARY AMONG MORTGAGE LENDERS. YOU MAY WISH TO COMPARE THESE CHARGES IN CONSIDERING THE TOTAL COST OF YOUR MORTGAGE".

(2) a copy of the most recent publication, currently entitled "Settlement Costs", available from the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development which describes information concerning the nature and costs of real estate settlement services.

(3) in the case of a first mortgage lender offering variable rate residential mortgage loans, not otherwise subject to Administrative Bulletin 13-2C (Revised) of the commissioner and, provided that the prospective mortgage borrower has requested information about or has submitted an application for a variable rate mortgage loan, a copy of the most recent publication available from the Federal Home Loan Bank Board which describes information concerning variable or adjustable rate mortgages, currently entitled "Consumer Handbook on Adjustable Rate Mortgages".

(4) a uniform model disclosure statement prescribed in regulations promulgated by the commissioner, written in plain and simple language, to aid prospective mortgage borrowers in understanding the mortgage application and approval process. The statement shall include, but need not be limited to, descriptions of the time periods generally required for processing of mortgage applications, the notices required by paragraph (d), and by the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and by comparable provisions of the General Laws, and terms and practices common in the commonwealth relative to mortgage lending including, but not limited to, interest rate commitments.

A first mortgage lender may require the mortgage borrower to execute, a signed acknowledgment of the receipt of the information required under the above paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive as a prerequisite to acceptance of any mortgage application as complete; provided, however, that in any transaction involving more than one applicant, the first mortgage lender need not provide such information to more than one of such applicants.

(d) Not later than twenty-one business days after the date of application for a first mortgage loan, the first mortgage lender shall mail or deliver to a prospective mortgage borrower whose application is not substantially complete, an oral or written statement of all verification information required to make a decision on the said application, together with an indication of which items have been received but are not complete and which items have not been received as of the date of the statement. Such verification information shall be limited only to those items actually required for the approval of the loan application. A first mortgage lender need not provide the statement required hereunder if such lender has either sent the notice required under paragraph (e), or has made a decision on the said application and has communicated the same to the mortgage borrower.

(e) A first mortgage lender shall send written notice to any mortgage borrower whose application, has been determined to be substantially complete, immediately upon the making of such determination. The front page of such notification shall include in boldface capital letters in no smaller than twelve-point type the title "IMPORTANT DISCLOSURE -- PLEASE READ", to be accompanied by the following statement printed in no smaller than ten-point type: "We now consider your mortgage application complete. A third party, such as a purchaser of mortgage loans from us, may require additional information from you in order to process your application. We will contact you right away if we need more information. If not, you will be notified of our decision on your application (which may be to offer a different amount than you applied for) no later than thirty days from the date of this notice, as required by the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act and comparable provisions of Massachusetts law. For information on how to assert your rights under these laws, consult the informational material provided as part of your application materials".

(f) Failure to comply with the provisions of paragraph (c) or (d) shall constitute an unfair or deceptive act or practice pursuant to the provisions of chapter ninety-three A.