Mortgage · Maryland
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Maryland mortgage FAQs
Demand is stable but slow-growing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 1% employment growth for loan officers from 2025 to 2035, slower than the average for all occupations. The field held about 283,000 jobs in 2025 and generates roughly 17,100 openings per year, mostly from replacing workers who leave the occupation.
Yes. Maryland law allows prelicensing education to be offered in a classroom, online, or by any other delivery method the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (NMLS) approves. All prelicensing courses and providers must be NMLS-approved; Maryland stopped approving courses and providers itself in 2010. The required 20 hours include 5 hours of Maryland-specific law, which can be satisfied with a Maryland comprehensive course or a state-specific elective.
Yes. Maryland law allows prelicensing education to be offered in a classroom, online, or by any other means approved by the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (NMLS). All prelicensing courses and providers must be NMLS-approved; Maryland itself no longer approves them.
Yes. Maryland's prelicensing education may be offered in a classroom, online, or by any other means approved by NMLS, and since January 1, 2010 all courses and providers must be NMLS-approved. Continuing education required for annual renewal can also be completed online through NMLS-approved providers.
Yes. Maryland processes mortgage license applications through the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (NMLS), an online system. The mortgage lender license is a company-level license that covers lending, brokering, and servicing activity, and the application, fees, and fingerprint submissions are handled through NMLS. Prelicensing education for individual originators may also be completed online, in a classroom, or by any other NMLS-approved means.
Yes. Mortgage professionals must be licensed in each state where they originate loans. A state-licensed MLO moving to Maryland may use Temporary Authority under federal law to originate loans while completing Maryland's state-specific education and testing, provided the MLO was licensed continuously during the 30 days before applying.
No, in most cases. Maryland excludes an individual who acts solely as a mortgage loan underwriter from the mortgage loan originator definition, so no MLO license is needed. The exclusion does not cover independent-contractor underwriters. Maryland treats independent-contractor underwriting as mortgage loan originator activity, which requires an MLO license.
In Maryland, a person acting solely as a mortgage loan processor or underwriter does not need a mortgage loan originator (MLO) license. The exclusion does not cover independent contractors: a processor or underwriter who works as an independent contractor is treated as engaging in MLO activity and must be licensed.
In Maryland, no license or certification is required for a loan processor who acts solely in that capacity, because such a person is excluded from the state's definition of mortgage loan originator. The exclusion does not extend to independent-contractor processors. Maryland treats independent-contractor processing as mortgage loan originator activity, which requires an MLO license.
No, if you act solely as an underwriter for a lender. Maryland law excludes individuals who act solely as mortgage loan processors or underwriters from the mortgage loan originator (MLO) licensing requirement. However, Maryland treats independent-contractor processing and underwriting as MLO activity, so an underwriter working as an independent contractor must hold an MLO license.