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Research

State of Surety Bond Requirements

How do the states actually structure surety bond requirements? This quarterly report measures requirement prevalence, fixed versus tiered amount structures, medians, and the extreme states across every state-backed bond type we track, using regulator-published figures only: no estimates, no filled gaps.

Data as of 2026-06-17. Current edition: Q4 2026. Every figure recomputes from the underlying dataset, so the report never goes stale.

By Cornerstone Staff, Financial Services State Licensing Specialists

Headline findings

11

state-backed bond types tracked

Cornerstone state-law dataset

88%

of tracked state requirements mandate a bond

State regulator requirements, state-law dataset

14%

of requiring states use tiered or variable amounts

State regulator requirements, state-law dataset

69

state and bond-type pairs with no bond required

State regulator requirements, state-law dataset

How many states require each bond

Share of tracked states that require a bond at licensing, by bond type. Each row links to the bond's guide and its per-state requirement grid.

States requiring a bond, by bond type

  1. Mortgage Banker required in 52 of 52 tracked states (100%)
  2. Mortgage Broker required in 52 of 52 tracked states (100%)
  3. Mortgage Lender required in 52 of 52 tracked states (100%)
  4. Mortgage Loan Originator required in 52 of 52 tracked states (100%)
  5. Mortgage Servicer required in 52 of 52 tracked states (100%)
  6. Money Transmitter Bond (Bond, not License) required in 51 of 52 tracked states (98%)
  7. Motor Vehicle Dealer required in 51 of 51 tracked states (100%)
  8. Subdivision required in 44 of 44 tracked states (100%)
  9. Debt Collector (Collection Agency) required in 38 of 52 tracked states (73%)
  10. Notary required in 29 of 51 tracked states (57%)
  11. Contractor License required in 19 of 51 tracked states (37%)

Fixed statutory amounts versus tiered requirements

Among states that require a bond, some publish one fixed statutory dollar amount and others set the amount by tier, license class, volume bracket, or per project. Tiered requirements mean two licensees in the same state can owe very different bonds, which is where checking the exact requirement matters most.

  • 86% of requiring state requirements publish a single fixed statutory amount (425 of 492).
  • 14% are tiered or variable, set by license class, volume, or project (67 of 492).

Requirement structure by bond type

  1. Subdivision 0 fixed statutory amounts, 44 tiered or variable (100% of requiring states)
  2. Contractor License 4 fixed statutory amounts, 15 tiered or variable (79% of requiring states)
  3. Motor Vehicle Dealer 43 fixed statutory amounts, 8 tiered or variable (16% of requiring states)
  4. Mortgage Banker 52 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  5. Mortgage Broker 52 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  6. Mortgage Lender 52 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  7. Mortgage Loan Originator 52 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  8. Mortgage Servicer 52 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  9. Debt Collector (Collection Agency) 38 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  10. Money Transmitter Bond (Bond, not License) 51 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)
  11. Notary 29 fixed statutory amounts, 0 tiered or variable (0% of requiring states)

Median amounts and extreme states

For bond types where at least 10 states publish a fixed dollar amount: the median requirement plus the highest- and lowest-requirement states. States without a published figure are excluded from these statistics rather than estimated. Each row links to the full state table in the Bond Cost Index.

Median, highest, and lowest statutory amounts

  1. Motor Vehicle Dealer median $50,000 across 43 states; highest $100,000 (Nevada), lowest $10,000 (New Jersey)
  2. Money Transmitter Bond (Bond, not License) median $25,000 across 51 states; highest $500,000 (New York), lowest $10,000 (Washington)
  3. Mortgage Banker median $10,000 across 52 states; highest $50,000 (Texas), lowest $10,000 (Alabama)
  4. Mortgage Broker median $10,000 across 52 states; highest $50,000 (Texas), lowest $10,000 (Alabama)
  5. Mortgage Lender median $10,000 across 52 states; highest $50,000 (Texas), lowest $10,000 (Alabama)
  6. Mortgage Loan Originator median $10,000 across 52 states; highest $50,000 (Texas), lowest $10,000 (Alabama)
  7. Mortgage Servicer median $10,000 across 52 states; highest $50,000 (Texas), lowest $10,000 (Alabama)
  8. Debt Collector (Collection Agency) median $10,000 across 38 states; highest $50,000 (Florida), lowest $5,000 (Alabama)
  9. Notary median $10,000 across 29 states; highest $50,000 (Louisiana), lowest $500 (Wisconsin)

Where no bond is required

Tracked states whose regulator publishes no bond requirement for the license type. Operating there still requires the license itself, and a bond can still apply through a different obligation.

No-bond states by bond type

  1. Contractor License 32 of 51 tracked states require no bond (63%)
  2. Notary 22 of 51 tracked states require no bond (43%)
  3. Debt Collector (Collection Agency) 14 of 52 tracked states require no bond (27%)
  4. Money Transmitter Bond (Bond, not License) 1 of 52 tracked states require no bond (2%)

Methodology and sourcing

All figures are computed live from our maintained state-law dataset, sourced from state regulator publications, the same data behind the Bond Cost Index and every per-state bond requirement page. When a state's requirement is re-verified, this report recomputes automatically; no figure is hand-typed.

A bond type is included only when the dataset covers at least 10 states for it, and median or extreme figures publish only when at least 10 states state a fixed dollar amount. A requirement counts as tiered or variable when the regulator sets the amount by license class, volume bracket, or per project instead of one statewide figure. States without a published figure are excluded from statistics rather than estimated.

Edition history

  • Q3 2026, published 2026-07-29. Inaugural edition.
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