CODE OF ETHICS AND BEST BUSINESS PRACTICES

PREAMBLE
Part of the mission of the North Carolina Association of Mortgage Professionals is to enable our membership to deliver a high quality of loan products and services to the market place, and to continually improve the professional image of our association members within the financial community.

We recognize that as Mortgage Professionals, we are, above all, service providers. As such, we should devote our energy, loyalty and confidentiality to our customers, the borrowers. To that end, we pledge our honor and our intellect to serving the financial needs of our customers.

The term “Mortgage Professionals” connotes competency, fairness and integrity, resulting from adherence to an ideal of high moral and ethical conduct. No inducement of profit and no instruction from clients ever can justify departure from this ideal.

Each Mortgage Professional associated with the North Carolina Association of Mortgage Professionals pledges to conduct business in accordance with the tenets set forth below.

While the Code of Ethics establishes obligations that may be higher than those mandated by law, in any instance where the Code of Ethics and the law conflict, the provisions of the law must take precedence.

Where the word “Professional” is used in this Code of Ethics, it shall be deemed to include licensed Mortgage Brokers and Lenders in the state of North Carolina as well as all licensed Loan Officers.

ARTICLE I
The Mortgage Professional shall perform all business activities in an ethical manner.

ARTICLE II
Each Mortgage Professional shall be dedicated to become, and remain, informed as to all matters affecting the lending industry.

ARTICLE III
Mortgage Professionals should be vigilant in their efforts to eliminate from their business, and from the market place, any practice which would be damaging to the public or bring discredit to our industry. (1)

ARTICLE IV
Mortgage Professionals should refrain from criticism of other Professionals. Furthermore, the Mortgage Professional shall not speak disparagingly of the business practices of a competitor or of a transaction being negotiated by a competitor.

ARTICLE V
The Mortgage Professional shall act in accordance with laws, rules and regulations of the state of North Carolina or in any other state in which they conduct business.

ARTICLE VI
The Mortgage Professional shall abide by generally accepted principles of real estate valuation when reporting to the investor regarding the collateral offered for the loan.

ARTICLE VII
The Mortgage Professional shall advise the property owner(s) of any equity interest in the collateral offered as security for the mortgage loan.

ARTICLE VIII
The Mortgage Professional shall not advertise, or publicize in any way, loan rates, terms or conditions which are not available or not likely to be available. All marketing shall be done in an honest manner. Mortgage Professionals shall take full responsibility for the truthfulness of advertising and the statements of selling agents.

ARTICLE IX
The Mortgage Professional shall abide by all agreements made by his or her employees, whether written or oral.

ARTICLE X
The Professional shall maintain one or more special accounts, separate from personal accounts, for the deposits of trust and escrow funds.

ARTICLE XI
The Mortgage Professional may ethically be compensated by both investor and borrower. It is the responsibility of the Mortgage Professional to clearly advise all parties of payment and program stipulations in accordance with current RESPA guidelines.

ARTICLE XII
To ensure complete and objective information to the investor, the Mortgage Professional shall secure and disclose complete and accurate information regarding the collateral or credit of each customer.

ARTICLE XIII
Licensed loan officers may only submit applications to their employer of record. Licensed Loan officers shall only receive pay or benefit from mortgage applications presented to their employer.

ARTICLE XIV
Licensed Mortgage Brokers and Mortgage Bankers shall accept only loan applications, or process loans originated by, a licensed loan officer in their employ.

ARTICLE XV
The Mortgage Professional shall honor the privacy and confidentiality of the applicant’s personal and financial information.

ARTICLE XVI
The Mortgage Professional shall avoid any circumstances that would create conflicts of interest or in any way undermine the trust relationship with the client.

ARTICLE XVII
Each member the North Carolina Association of Mortgage Professionals agrees to act responsively to any complaint or grievance. It is the responsibility of each member to enter into the mediation process should it be determined necessary by the Board of Directors. Each Professional is responsible for reporting any unscrupulous practices that might jeopardize our industry to the Ethics Committee or Board of Directors.

ARTICLE XIX
The Professional takes responsibility to promote the Code of Ethics within his or her company, and pledges to adhere to both the letter and spirit of the Code of Ethics.

ARTICLE XX
Appraisals shall be ordered in writing, with reasonable action taken by the Professional to collect the appraisal fee at the time of application.

(1) Professionals should assist the Association Ethics Committee in settling grievances. Each Professional is responsible for reporting and unscrupulous practices that might jeopardize our industry, to the Ethics Committee or the NCAMP Board of Directors.