Can I complete MLO continuing education for free?
Continuing education for a state-licensed mortgage loan originator must come from courses approved by the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System (NMLS), and education providers set their own course prices. The federal rules offer no waiver of the 8-hour annual requirement. One route that earns credit without paying course tuition: an instructor of an approved CE course receives 2 hours of credit toward their own annual requirement for every 1 hour taught.
Delaware has no free continuing education option; the required 8 hours must come from NMLS-approved providers, which sell the courses, and prices vary by provider and course format. One way to earn credit without paying for a course is teaching: an MLO who is an approved instructor of an approved CE course receives 2 hours of CE credit for every 1 hour taught.
Sources: 5 Del. C. Ch. 24: Mortgage Loan Originators (Delaware SAFE Act).
No. The 8 required continuing education hours must come from NMLS-approved course providers, whose courses are paid products, and prices vary by provider and by format (online, video, and webinar versions of the same content are priced differently). The fixed point is the deadline: Idaho CE must be completed by December 1.
Sources: NMLS: Idaho state-specific PE and CE requirements for MLOs; Idaho DOF Guidance Statement 2020-01-CFB: financial responsibility/fitness of MLOs and key individuals.