In most states, yes. A real-estate agent who also holds a mortgage loan originator license may originate the buyer’s mortgage on the same purchase, with a written disclosure of both roles and both forms of pay, and the buyer’s consent. Three states bar it: Louisiana, Rhode Island, Utah.
We read the mortgage licensing law and the real-estate license law of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and each state page quotes the operative text and links to it. 9 jurisdictions address the dual role directly and permit it. 10 permit it with a named condition. In 28 we found no rule against it, which is documented silence rather than a stated permission, and in some of those the regulator has written something short of a rule, which the state page quotes. One state is not yet reviewed.
How to read the answers
- Yes. A statute, rule or regulator writing directly contemplates one person in both roles and permits it, usually with a prescribed disclosure.
- Yes, with conditions. Permitted, subject to a condition on every file, such as prior written consent, a license grade, or how the mortgage pay is papered.
- No rule against it found. The operative statutes contain no prohibition, and the general disclosure rules apply. This is not a clearance. Check with the state before the first file.
- No. A cited rule bars the dual role or makes it unworkable.
- Not resolved. Two cited rules pull against each other and the regulator has not said how they fit. The page states the conflict rather than picking a side.
Every state
| State | Same deal, both roles | Ike |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | ||
| Alaska | ||
| Arizona | Yes, with conditions | |
| Arkansas | ||
| California | Yes | |
| Colorado | Yes | Coming soon |
| Connecticut | Yes, with conditions | |
| Delaware | ||
| District of Columbia | Yes | |
| Florida | Coming soon | |
| Georgia | ||
| Hawaii | ||
| Idaho | ||
| Illinois | Coming soon | |
| Indiana | ||
| Iowa | ||
| Kansas | Yes | |
| Kentucky | ||
| Louisiana | No | |
| Maine | Yes, with conditions | |
| Maryland | ||
| Massachusetts | ||
| Michigan | Coming soon | |
| Minnesota | ||
| Mississippi | ||
| Missouri | ||
| Montana | ||
| Nebraska | Yes | |
| Nevada | Not yet reviewed | |
| New Hampshire | Yes | |
| New Jersey | Yes, with conditions | |
| New Mexico | ||
| New York | Yes, with conditions | |
| North Carolina | ||
| North Dakota | ||
| Ohio | Yes | |
| Oklahoma | ||
| Oregon | ||
| Pennsylvania | ||
| Rhode Island | No | |
| South Carolina | ||
| South Dakota | Yes, with conditions | |
| Tennessee | Coming soon | |
| Texas | Yes | Coming soon |
| Utah | No | |
| Vermont | ||
| Virginia | Yes | |
| Washington | Yes, with conditions | |
| West Virginia | Yes, with conditions | |
| Wisconsin | Yes, with conditions | Coming soon |
| Wyoming | Yes, with conditions |
What applies in every state
- Both licenses must be active. The mortgage side is an individual MLO license, sponsored by a licensed mortgage company, with the SAFE test, 20 hours of education and a background check behind it.
- Federal law sits above the state rule. RESPA Section 8 bars pay for a referral, and Regulation Z sets what a loan originator may be paid for. Compensation on the mortgage side is for origination work performed. The RESPA and referral-fee explainer walks through it.
- The lender on the loan has its own rule. FHA permits the dual role since 2022. Conventional lenders decide file by file in writing.
- The buyer keeps the right to choose any lender, and the disclosure says so.
Go deeper
- RESPA and referral fees, for agents: what a lender may and may not pay an agent, and why the licensed route exists.
- What an MLO license costs and how long it takes: the fee table, the first-time pass rate, and the calendar.
- What the mortgage on a buyer-side deal pays: worked from the median purchase loan in every state.
- SAFE test practice questions: original questions in the test’s own shape, with answers.
- The agent income calculator: your commission plus expected mortgage income per deal, with the median loan in your county as the default.