Each licensee must maintain records with respect to each loan made under Texas Finance Code, Chapter 342, Subchapter G and each home equity loan made under Texas Constitution, Article XVI, Section 50, and make those records available for examination. The records required by this section may be maintained by using either a paper or manual recordkeeping system, electronic recordkeeping system, optically imaged recordkeeping system, or a combination of the preceding types of systems, unless otherwise specified by statute or regulation. If federal law requirements for record retention are different from the provisions contained in this section, the federal law requirements prevail only to the extent of the conflict with the provisions of this section. The records required by this section must be retained and made available for inspection in the same manner as that specified in §83.828(14) of this title (relating to Files and Records Required (Subchapter E and F Lenders)).
  (1) Required records. A licensee must maintain the following items in a substantially similar form to the respective provisions of §83.828 of this title, as follows:
    (A) A loan register;
    (B) Transfer records;
    (C) General business and accounting records;
    (D) A record of daily transactions;
    (E) Insurance loss registers;
    (F) Advertising records;
    (G) Adverse action records; and
    (H) A compliance file.
  (2) Record of individual borrower's account. A separate record must be maintained for the account of each borrower and the record must contain at least the following information on each loan:
    (A) Loan number as recorded on loan register;
    (B) Loan schedule and terms itemized to show:
      (i) date of loan;
      (ii) number of installments;
      (iii) due date of installments;
      (iv) amount of each installment; and
      (v) maturity date;
    (C) Name, address, and telephone number of borrower;
    (D) Names and addresses of co-borrowers, if any;
    (E) Legal description of real property;
    (F) Principal amount;
    (G) Total interest charges, including the scheduled base finance charge, the administrative fee, points, and odd days interest on the first installment period;
    (H) Amount of premium charges for insurance itemized to show:
      (i) credit life insurance;
      (ii) credit accident and health (disability) insurance; and
      (iii) personal property insurance;
    (I) Amount of official fees for recording, amending, or continuing a notice of security interest that are collected at the time the loan is made;
    (J) Individual payment entries itemized to show:
      (i) date payment received; dual postings are acceptable if date of posting is other than date of receipt;
      (ii) actual amounts received for application to principal and interest; and
      (iii) actual amounts paid for default, deferment, or other authorized charges;
    (K) In the event a loan is prepaid in full, refunds of unearned charges and unearned insurance premiums may be required. A licensee is responsible for substantiating final entries and for substantiating that refunds due were paid to borrowers. Refund amounts must be itemized to show:
      (i) interest charges refunded, including the refund of any unearned points; and
      (ii) credit life, credit accident and health, and personal property insurance charges refunded, showing separately the refund applicable to each separate insurance policy or coverage;
    (L) Collection contact history. A licensee must make a written or an electronic record of each and every contact made by a licensee with the borrower or any other person. The written or electronic record must also include every contact made by the borrower with the licensee. The written record must include the date, method of contact, contacted party, person initiating the contact, and a summary of the contact; and
    (M) Corrective entries. A licensee may make corrective entries to the borrower's account record if the corrective entry is justified. A licensee must maintain the reason and supporting documentation for each corrective entry made to the borrower's account record. The reason for the corrective entry may be recorded in the collection contact history of the borrower's account record. The supporting documentation justifying the corrective entry may be maintained in the individual borrower's account file or properly stored and indexed in a licensee's optically imaged recordkeeping system. If a licensee manually maintains the borrower's account record, the licensee must properly correct an improper entry by drawing a single line through the improper entry and entering the correct information above or below the improper entry. No erasures or other obliterations may be made on the payments received or collection contact history section of the manual borrower's account record.
  (3) Official fees records.
    (A) The amount of official fees collected at the time the loan is made must be recorded on the individual borrower's account record.
    (B) Disbursement procedures.
      (i) Fees collected at the time a loan is made for recording, amending, or continuing a notice of security interest must be disbursed to the recording agency within 30 days from the date of collection from the borrowers.
      (ii) Each licensee should disburse, to the recording agency, release of lien fees collected from borrowers within 30 days from the date the loan is paid in full. If the releases of lien fees are not disbursed within this period, the fees must be returned to the borrowers and the release of lien effected by the licensee and at the expense of the licensee.
  (4) Record of loans in litigation and foreclosure.
    (A) An index of each foreclosure as it occurs and each legal action by or against the licensee as it is initiated must be recorded. The index must show the borrower's name, account number, and date of action.
    (B) All loan records, correspondence, and any other information pertinent to the litigation or foreclosure must be maintained in the borrower's account folders or files.
  (5) Loan records and documents.
    (A) Loan documents and other records must be maintained as required to evidence compliance with applicable state and federal laws and regulations including, but not limited to, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Truth in Lending Act.
    (B) Supplemental insurance records. Each licensee must maintain in the borrower's file supplemental records supporting the settlement or denials of claims reported in the registers. If the reason for the denial of a credit life insurance or a credit accident and health insurance claim is based upon the medical records of the borrower, supplemental records supporting the denial of the claim must be forwarded to the commissioner upon request. A licensee must maintain supplemental insurance records in a form substantially similar to §83.828(10)(B)(i) - (iii) of this title.

Source Note: The provisions of this §83.829 adopted to be effective November 9, 2006, 31 TexReg 9006; amended to be effective November 4, 2010, 35 TexReg 9698; amended to be effective July 10, 2014, 39 TexReg 5142; amended to be effective November 8, 2018, 43 TexReg 7338