Mississippi Mortgage Broker Bond

It is $50,000. Senate Bill 2508, passed in the 2025 Regular Session, amended Miss. Code § 81-18-11 to raise the mortgage broker bond ceiling from $25,000 to $50,000 and the mortgage lender ceiling from $150,000 to $250,000, effective July 1, 2025. A first-year applicant is now set at a flat $50,000 (broker) or $250,000 (lender). Any page still quoting a $25,000 Mississippi broker bond is citing the pre-July-2025 statute.

Mississippi does not hard-code a single amount for every licensee the way Georgia does. Section 81-18-11(3) directs the Department of Banking and Consumer Finance commissioner to set the penal sum "by rule or regulation" and to base it "upon loan activity during the previous year" — but the same sentence caps it so the bond "shall not exceed" $50,000 for a broker or $250,000 for a lender. The one exception the statute writes out explicitly: for an initial applicant, the bond "shall be set at" the full $50,000 (broker) or $250,000 (lender). So a brand-new broker posts the maximum from day one, and renewals are sized within that ceiling by prior-year Mississippi production.

Your company bond covers them. Under § 81-18-11(1), if a mortgage loan originator is an employee or exclusive-agent independent contractor of a licensed company, "the surety bond of the person who is subject to this chapter may be used in lieu of the mortgage loan originator's surety bond requirement." Section 81-18-11(2) adds that the company bond "shall provide coverage for each mortgage loan originator." That means one properly sized company bond satisfies the requirement for all sponsored MLOs — you do not buy a separate $50,000 bond per originator.

You pay a premium, not the full $50,000. With strong credit the premium runs about 1-3% of the bond amount — roughly $500 to $1,500 a year on the $50,000 broker bond. Fair credit typically lands in the 3-5% range ($1,500-$2,500), and challenged credit runs 5-10% ($2,500-$5,000). Lenders pay the same rate bands against the larger $250,000 penal sum. Because the broker amount doubled in July 2025, existing licensees renewing after that date generally see their premium rise proportionally.

Section 81-18-11(5) sets a priority. The bond runs in favor, first, of the State of Mississippi for the use, benefit, and indemnity of any person who suffers damage or loss from the company's breach of contract, breach of an obligation arising from a contract, or violation of law — that is the consumer-protection layer. Second, it answers for civil penalties, criminal fines, or the State's costs of investigation and prosecution, including local law enforcement. If a claim is paid out, § 81-18-11(4) lets the commissioner require you to file a new bond immediately.

The Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance (DBCF) administers the S.A.F.E. Mortgage Act and takes mortgage license applications and renewals through NMLS. You upload an electronic surety bond in the form prescribed by the commissioner to your NMLS record; the DBCF reviews it as part of your company license. We place the bond in the correct NMLS electronic format and can turn it around the same day so it does not hold up your filing.