Q: I was told that if you have a real estate license and a mortgage lender’s license you can’t originate FHA loans. Is this true? I hold a real estate agent’s license and am a licensed mortgage professional and I think this rule is taking away from my ability to make a living.

A: If I understand your predicament, you want to sell houses, and then provide the buyers with their mortgage, collecting commission on the purchase of the property and fees for arranging the financing.

If that’s the case, it won’t fly. According to a spokesperson from FHA, you can’t be actively involved in selling real estate while you’re originating FHA mortgages for a living. If you have an inactive real estate license from a previous life, that shouldn’t exclude you from doing FHA loans. The FHA appears to be trying to prevent fraud and violations of RESPA.

Read more on RESPA.