RESPA - Real Estate

Settlement Procedures Act

In the business of providing financial solutions for consumers, our customers regularly seek our recommendations to professionals for whom they solicit advice, counsel or services for a particular part of a transaction.  Our industry is governed by several agencies, one being the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - commonly referred to as HUD.  HUD is responsible for administering a law passed in 1974 that is referred to as RESPA (Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act) - pronounced RES-PA.  RESPA is still causing confusion years later due to market changes and technology improvements, and the resulting interpretations vary from attorney to attorney.  Several attorneys advise do “do nothing” and you are safe. Unfortunately, this advice is in direct conflict with the needs and desires of the consumer in a real estate transaction.

RESPA specifically prohibits mortgage lenders from giving “things of value” - items or services of value - to persons in exchange for referrals of clients for financing.  The actual text reads “the term ‘person’ includes individuals, corporations, associations, partnerships, and trusts” and would include real estate agents, attorneys, insurance agents, financial planners, taxation professionals as well as consumers - any person with whom one can conduct business.

The purpose of this regulation is to protect consumers and control costs associated with real estate transactions. Adding a referral fee or financial incentive to a referral would increase the cost to consumers - this added cost would be passed on to the consumer.  The primary purpose of RESPA  is to protect the consumer and keep costs under control.  At Czech Mortgage we want to earn the right to receive other professional’s referrals by continuing to deliver exceptional service and will NEVER attempt to buy their business, or give any appearance of buying business.

In real estate circles, it has been an accepted practice to provide a business card for a service provider. In the strictest interpretation of the law, a person could make the argument that a business card is a form of advertisement and the person delivering the business card is helping the business on the business card avoid needing to pay for postage for its delivery. A few state and or local regulatory organizations have gone as far as to require a real estate professional to give three business cards for lenders in an area to allow the consumer to choose their desired service provider. At the time that RESPA was created, the internet, email and websites were not yet in existence.  For our clients that prefer to use the internet as a medium to collect information or conduct their transaction, we have made this section of our website available as an Electronic Business Card.

Our company refuses any attempt to give or receive any referral fees!  Some professionals from time to time do mention the services of our company to their clients and some do not.  All references are earned by providing exceptional customer service and are in no manner associated with a fee.  There is no expectation or obligation for any professionals listed on our website to reciprocate or provide compensation to us in any way.  Any professional listed on our website is in no way to be deemed as recommended (an example is the person at the top of the page is preferred, we do not post in any particular order) nor do we endorse in reciprocation of payment.

A posting on this site is not conditional upon directing business to our business. We invite professionals to call our office if they would like to be listed here.  However be aware that we interview and in some cases conduct background checks to ensure we are not referring our clients to potential criminals or those with complaints lodged on a state or federal level with organizations such as the Better Business Bureau.  We feel it is our responsibility to associate with professionals whose commitment to customer service and professionalism is equal to or greater than our company's and allow our customer’s to access to those reputable professionals adhering to the same level of ethics and integrity.  

We take the business of a referred client very seriously. We understand that we are an extension of the referring professional’s reputation and guard that reputation, along with its trust and responsibility, very seriously. We understand that receiving a referral which ties a fee to the referring source, would now place the consumer in the hands of the highest bidder who is not necessarily the best person for the job. We do not want our recommendations to be induced by any financial gain.

All listed professionals have agreed to comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations, licensing and otherwise, regarding the performance of their respective responsibilities. No one posted on our site, through any interpretation shall be construed as constituting a partnership, joint venture, employment or agency relationship.  Neither party shall be liable to the other for any misrepresentation or fraudulent act by a party’s customer.  We provide these listings as a public service to the professionals and consumers in the area as a free consumer service with no referral fees or obligations associated with any referral. For more information about our website please call our office.