Tuesday, January 20, 2004 - TSLD Exam is Ready for 2004

The initial exam is complete and will be first offered Feb 2, 2004. The state has selected Promissor to provide the exam at 18 locations in Texas.  Promissor is charging $42.00 to take and grade the exam for the TSLD and $17.50 for digital fingerprinting if desired. Provisional licenses expire May 31, 2004 and are required to pass the exam by that date.  There is no limit to the number of times it takes to pass the exam but they must pay $42.00 each time the exam is taken.

The exam will consist of  75 questions of which 50% pertain to Federal Statutes, RESPA, TILA and ECOA. 30% is the MBLA and TSLD Rules and Regs  and 20% generic questions and math.  The person taking the exam will randomly draw 75 questions from a database of 250 multiple-choice questions. A testing computer is provided.  A passing grade has not been determined but a Mortgage Broker is expected to score higher than a Loan Officer.

Alliance Academy is providing an Exam Prep Course,  Keeping Current with Texas Mortgage Lending, a 15 hr Compliance course, either on-line or live class which  specifically covers these Federal statutes and Texas rules and regs. This course is also approved by the TSLD for prelicensing and renewals. Ray Casas, former Director of Licensing at the TSLD, teaches our live version in Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio.

Wednesday, January 14, 2004 - Promissor/TSLD Exam Update

Promissor/TSLD Exam Update 1/14/04

1. Beginning Jan 21, Call 800.275.8246 to schedule exam.
2. Need 2 Weeks Advance Notice.
3. Facilities Hours are 7am to 10pm.
4. Provide ID.
5. Request Exam Location.
6. Select Exam ie. Mortgage Broker or Loan Officer
7. Select Language-Exam Available in English or Spanish.
8. Any Special Needs.
9. Prepay $42 for Exam. Digital Fingerprinting Available for $17.50.

(or)  Register at www.promissor.com    (or)  Try Walk-in 30 Minutes in Advance

Promissor will have 18 Locations in Texas.

Need Government issued Photo ID.

Delayed Scoring Process

• New Test-No Passing Grade Established Yet.
• 75 Multiple Choice Questions-Mortgage Brokers Score Higher.
• Those scoring 80% or more will receive a passing grade.
• Those scoring 40% or less will receive a failing grade.
• Those scoring between 40% and 80%, will wait for their pass/fail grade.

Sunday, January 11, 2004 - The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA)

Beginning January 01, 2004 the new provisions makes it easier for consumers in all fifty states to deal with their credit files.

Among the new FACTA provisions are a free copy, annually upon request, of credit reports from each of the three credit reporting agencies (CRAs), disclosure of credit scores, which are used by lenders when making lending decisions and several identity theft measures including 'Fraud Alerts' in credit files.

Further, when requesting free credit reports, the law includes a provision whereby the CRA's must notify consumers of their right to get their credit scores and also include an explanation of factors that may have a negative affect on your score. Now consumers may dispute directly to the creditor and the CRA, plus creditors must notify a consumer whenever negative information is going to be sent to a CRA for inclusion in a credit file, reducing the number of inaccurate reports going into files because the consumer will know in advance. Now, consumers would know in advance if a lender was making a false report on a late pay or other delinquency, for instance, and therefore may dispute it directly before it hits a credit file.

Further, to help consumers who are actively shopping for a mortgage, automobile or other type of loan, avoid having an incredible number of inquiries on their credit reports as a result, would receive a special notification from the CRA that these inquiries are lowering the consumer's credit score. Here is a summary of the major amendments:

• Provide consumers with a free credit report every year.
• Give consumers the right to see their credit scores.
• Provide consumers with the ability to opt-out of information sharing between affiliated companies for marketing purposes.
• Ensure that consumers are notified if merchants are going to report negative information to the credit bureaus about them.
• Allow consumers to place "fraud alerts" in their credit reports to prevent identity  thieves from opening accounts in their names, including special provisions to protect active duty military personnel.
• Allow consumers to block information from being given to a credit bureau and  from being reported by a credit bureau if such information results from identity theft.
• Restrict access to consumers' sensitive health information.
• Provide consumers with one-call-for-all protection by requiring credit bureaus to  share consumer calls on identity theft, including requested fraud alert blocking.
• Require creditors to take certain precautions before extending credit to those who have placed "fraud alerts" in their files.
•  Stop merchants from printing more than the last five digits of a payment card on an electronic receipt.