All states · Filled 2026-09-17
Arizona mortgage advertising rules
Scanned
Adline flags phrases that match cited rules. It does not certify that Arizona marketing is compliant. We flag and cite. We never certify. This is not legal advice. Whether a rule reaches you depends on your license type. Federal Reg Z and Reg N still apply.
Scanned. When the account or the page places the advertiser in Arizona, findings can carry the citation quoted below. That is not a certification. The engine cites Washington, Arizona, and Idaho only.
Brokers, bankers, and originators
Arizona runs parallel broker and banker prohibitions plus a distinct originator disclosure mandate at A.R.S. 6-991.02(N). Originators may not advertise on their own behalf.
Regulating agency
Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions (DIFI).
Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions (DIFI). [OFFICIAL. difi.az.gov]
NMLS and license display: Conjunctive.
Governing statute and administrative code
- A.R.S. Title 6, Chapter 9, Article 1. Mortgage Brokers, A.R.S. § 6-901 *et seq.* [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL]
- A.R.S. Title 6, Chapter 9, Article 2. Mortgage Bankers, A.R.S. § 6-941 *et seq.* [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL]
- A.R.S. Title 6, Chapter 9. Loan Originators, A.R.S. § 6-991 *et seq.* [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL]
- A.A.C. Title 20, Ch. 4, Article 9. Mortgage Brokers (R20-4-901 to -928) [REGULATION]
- Separate regime: Consumer Lenders, A.R.S. § 6-601 *et seq.*. NOT VERIFIED; I attempted to retrieve A.R.S. § 6-608 and the azleg page returned a JavaScript redirect. Arizona consumer-lender advertising rules are not covered here.
THREE-REGIME NOTE: Arizona runs parallel and near-identical prohibited-acts advertising provisions for brokers (§ 6-909(C)) and bankers (§ 6-947(D)), plus a distinct and much more demanding disclosure mandate for loan originators (§ 6-991.02(N)). The originator rule is the one that gets people caught.
License and NMLS ID display
VerifiedA.R.S. § 6-991.02(N) [STATUTE] [REPRODUCTION. FindLaw; confirm against azleg.gov]:
"A loan originator shall not advertise for or solicit mortgage business in any manner without all of the following: 1. The employer's name, or other assumed name or trade name ... and the employer's license number. 2. Approval of the employing mortgage broker, mortgage banker, consumer lender or registered exempt person. 3. The unique identifier the loan originator maintains with the nationwide mortgage licensing system and registry..."
CONJUNCTIVE. the statute says "all of the following." Three elements, every one required: 1. Employer's name (or DBA/trade name submitted to DIFI under § 6-117) AND the employer's Arizona license number; 2. Prior approval of the employing entity. a *process* requirement embedded in an advertising statute; 3. The loan originator's own NMLS unique identifier.
Note what is NOT required: the originator's own state license number. And note what is required and is easy to miss: the employer's Arizona state license number. separate from, and in addition to, the NMLS ID.
AND. originators may not advertise for themselves at all. A.R.S. § 6-991.02(C) [STATUTE] [REPRODUCTION. FindLaw]:
"A loan originator acting on the loan originator's own behalf shall not advertise, display, distribute, broadcast or televise ... in any manner, any solicitation of mortgage business."
Prohibited claims
VerifiedBrokers. A.R.S. § 6-909(C) [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL. azleg.gov]:
"A person engaged in the mortgage business shall not knowingly advertise ... any false, misleading or deceptive statement or representation with regard to the rates, terms or conditions for a mortgage loan."
and:
"The charges or rates of charge, if stated, shall be set forth in such manner as to prevent misunderstanding by prospective borrowers."
Bankers. A.R.S. § 6-947(D) [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL. azleg.gov]: parallel prohibition, with the trailing clause worded differently:
"The charges or rates of charge, if stated, shall be set forth in a clear and concise manner."
Originators. A.R.S. § 6-991.02 [STATUTE]: *"A loan originator shall not make a false promise or misrepresentation or conceal an essential or material fact in the course of the mortgage broker or mortgage banker business."*
What it attaches to: § 6-909(C) and § 6-947(D) are expressly limited to rates, terms, or conditions. No express word-ban on "lowest," "best," "cheapest," "guaranteed," "pre-approved," "free," "no cost," or "government" located in Arizona mortgage law.
Rate advertising
VerifiedArizona has a state-specific rate-clarity overlay beyond Reg Z: if charges or rates are stated at all, they must be presented "in such manner as to prevent misunderstanding by prospective borrowers" (brokers, § 6-909(C)) / "in a clear and concise manner" (bankers, § 6-947(D)). This is a standalone, independently enforceable clarity duty. No APR-specific, lock-term, or "rates subject to change" mandate located beyond the federal baseline.
Ad filing, prior approval, retention
VerifiedNo regulator filing or prior approval located. But Arizona embeds a private prior-approval step: § 6-991.02(N)(2) requires the employing licensee's approval before an originator advertises.
RETENTION. REQUIRED. A.A.C. R20-4-917 (Recordkeeping Requirements) [REGULATION] [REPRODUCTION. Cornell LII]: subsection (B)(7) requires retention of *"Samples of every piece of advertising relating to the mortgage broker's business in Arizona."* Retention period reported as at least two years under subsection (E) unless a longer statutory period applies. PARAPHRASE on the retention period. NOT VERBATIM. Re-pull R20-4-917(E) from the Arizona Secretary of State's official code before publication. Note this rule sits in Article 9 (Mortgage Brokers). whether an identical obligation binds mortgage bankers is NOT VERIFIED.
Note: "every piece" is absolute. There is no de minimis or promotional-item carve-out on the face of what Retrieved (contrast Colorado and Georgia, which have one).
Social media and character-limited media
None foundNone found as a distinct social-media rule or abbreviated-disclosure accommodation. Retrieved 2026-09-16 against DIFI's mortgage "Laws, Rules & Substantive Policy Statement" page: no substantive policy statement on advertising, social media, or electronic media. A.R.S. § 6-991.02(N) [STATUTE] has no character-limited-media exception. Originator ads still need all three statutory elements. That makes compliant originator advertising on X, SMS, or display banners difficult in Arizona.
Anything unusual
- § 6-991.02(N)(2). "approval of the employing" licensee is a statutory element of a lawful ad. An otherwise perfectly disclosed ad run without documented employer approval is a statutory violation. Most ad-review platforms do not model this. Keep an approval audit trail.
- § 6-991.02(C). an LO advertising "on the loan originator's own behalf" is flatly prohibited. Read together with (N), Arizona's structure is: every originator ad must be an *employer's* ad. This is the single most common way a personal-brand LO social account goes wrong in Arizona.
- Trade-name pre-registration: the employer name used must be a name "submitted to the department pursuant to section 6-117." Using an unregistered DBA in an ad is itself the violation.
- No advertising rule in A.A.C. Art. 9. Arizona's advertising law is statutory, not regulatory (except recordkeeping). Searching only the admin code will miss everything.
Penalties
VerifiedA.R.S. § 6-132 [STATUTE] [OFFICIAL. azleg.gov] is Title 6-wide. It reaches a knowing violation of Chapter 9 advertising duties. Retrieved 2026-09-16:
"The deputy director may assess a civil penalty in an amount of not more than $5,000 against a person, including any officer, director, employee, agent or other person who participates in the conduct of the affairs of the person, for any knowing violation of any provision of this title or of any rule or order adopted or issued pursuant to this title. ... Each day of violation constitutes a separate offense."
Sources
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00132.htm [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00909.htm [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00947.htm [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00991-02.htm [OFFICIAL]
- https://codes.findlaw.com/az/title-6-banks-and-financial-institutions/az-rev-st-sect-6-991-02/ [REPRODUCTION]
- https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/arizona/Ariz-Admin-Code-SS-R20-4-917 [REPRODUCTION]
- https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/arizona/title-20/chapter-04/article-9 [REPRODUCTION]
- https://difi.az.gov/industry/mortgage-industry/laws-rules-substantive-policy-statement [OFFICIAL]
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Sources
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00132.htmofficial [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00909.htmofficial [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00947.htmofficial [OFFICIAL]
- https://www.azleg.gov/ars/6/00991-02.htmofficial [OFFICIAL]
- https://codes.findlaw.com/az/title-6-banks-and-financial-institutions/az-rev-st-sect-6-991-02/reproduction [REPRODUCTION]
- https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/arizona/Ariz-Admin-Code-SS-R20-4-917reproduction [REPRODUCTION]
- https://www.law.cornell.edu/regulations/arizona/title-20/chapter-04/article-9reproduction [REPRODUCTION]
- https://difi.az.gov/industry/mortgage-industry/laws-rules-substantive-policy-statementofficial [OFFICIAL]