Uniform State Test Content - State Law and Regulation, Including Georgia
The Uniform State Test is a set of state-law items adopted uniformly by participating state agencies, including Georgia, so that one national-plus-UST test supports licensing in every participating state. It tests license maintenance and renewal, regulator authority, required conduct, prohibited acts, advertising, records, branch licensing, and discipline - plus the Georgia-specific points below.
The UST core
- Licensure is required before taking an application; the license is held through a sponsoring licensed mortgage broker or lender.
- Regulators may examine books and records, issue subpoenas, deny, suspend, revoke, fine, or order restitution, and require the unique identifier on advertising and business documents.
- Licensees must report changes and events - address, name, employment, criminal indictments and convictions, and regulatory actions - within the state-set window through NMLS, and renew annually in the year-end renewal period.
- Records supporting each loan must be retained and available for examination.
- Advertising must include the company name and unique identifier where required and must not be false or misleading.
Georgia framework
Georgia regulates mortgage brokers, lenders, and originators under the Georgia Residential Mortgage Act, O.C.G.A. Title 7, Chapter 1, administered by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance through NMLS. Georgia also applies its Fair Lending Act to high-cost home loans, restricting features such as prepayment penalties and balloon payments, and its Fair Business Practices Act to deceptive conduct. Unlicensed origination is itself a violation, as is a false statement on a license application.
Worked example
An originator licensed in Georgia wants to move from one Georgia-licensed brokerage to another. She cannot simply start taking applications for the new company while sponsored by the old one. She must terminate the existing sponsorship, file the change through NMLS, and wait until the license reflects the new sponsor and an active status before originating. Any application taken in the gap is unlicensed activity.
Traps that cost marks
- Assuming passing the national test alone authorizes origination; state licensure must be active.
- Assuming UST items replace state law - Georgia-specific requirements still apply.
- Originating while a license is pending, inactive, or sponsored by a former employer.
- Missing the reporting deadline for a criminal or regulatory event.
- Advertising a rate or term without required identifying information.