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Intercontinental Exchange, Inc./Black Knight, Inc., In the Matter of
FTC Suit Leads to $16.7 Million Judgment Against Principals and Celebrity Endorsers of Real Estate Investment Training Program
FTC Approves Final Order against HomeAdvisor, Inc. for Deceptively Marketing its Leads for Home Improvement Projects
HomeAdvisor, In the Matter of
In January 2023, the FTC issued an order requiring Denver-based HomeAdvisor, Inc. – a company affiliated with Angi, formerly known as “Angie’s List” – to pay up to $7.2 million for using a wide range of deceptive and misleading tactics in selling home improvement project leads to service providers, including small businesses operating in the “gig” economy. The Commission announced approval of the final consent order in April 2023.
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. and Black Knight, Inc., FTC v.
FTC Staff Seeks Court Order Preventing ICE from Consummating its Acquisition of Rival Black Knight Pending Agency Administrative Challenge
FTC Acts to Block Deal Combining the Two Top Mortgage Loan Technology Providers
FTC Order Requires HomeAdvisor to Pay Up To $7.2 Million and Stop Deceptively Marketing its Leads for Home Improvement Projects
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Extension (Regulation O)
Square One Development Group Inc., et al., U.S. and State of Wisconsin v.
The U.S. Department of Justice, on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, and the Wisconsin Attorney General, filed suit against Consumer Law Protection and related companies, along with their owners and operators, Christopher Carroll, George Reed, Louann Reed, Scott Jackson, and Eduardo Balderas for scamming consumers—mostly older adults—out of more than $90 million in a massive timeshare exit scam.
FTC, California Act to Stop Ygrene Energy Fund from Deceiving Consumers About PACE Financing, Placing Liens on Homes Without Consumers’ Consent
Opendoor Labs, Inc.
Opendoor Labs Inc. promised to revolutionize home selling by offering to buy consumers homes for market value while reducing transaction costs. It promised to provide speed and certainty to home sellers while saving them thousands compared to selling on the market or selling traditionally, as the company describes such sales. Although Opendoor generally delivered on its promises to provide a faster and more certain transaction, it did not save consumers money. In fact, consumers who sold to Opendoor typically lost thousands compared to what they would have made on the market. Contrary to the company's marketing, it made submarket offers and had associated costs higher than in traditional sales. The company's marketing and the opacity of the transaction, however, left consumers unaware that they had lost money. The Commission approved a final order in this matter in October 2022.
Opendoor Labs Inc; Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment
FTC Approves Final Order Prohibiting Louisiana Real Estate Appraisers Board from Fixing Prices for Appraisal Services in Louisiana
Louisiana Real Estate Appraisers Board, In the Matter of
The Federal Trade Commission filed an administrative complaint against the Louisiana Real Estate Appraisers Board, alleging that the group is unreasonably restraining price competition for appraisal services in Louisiana, contrary to federal antitrust law. The complaint alleged that the appraisal board’s regulations exceeded the scope of the mandate outlined in the Dodd-Frank Act that required appraisal management companies to pay “a rate that is customary and reasonable for appraisal services performed in the market area of the property being appraised.” Specifically, the board required appraisal fees to equal or exceed the median fees identified in survey reports commissioned and published by the board. The board then investigated and sanctioned companies that paid fees below the specified levels.
Shortly before the administrative trial was set to begin, the FTC and the board reached a proposed settlement agreement.
On April 5, 2022, the Commission announced the final consent agreement in this matter.
Operators of Investment Coaching Scheme Banned from Industry and Ordered to Pay Millions in Redress to Defrauded Consumers
Zurixx, LLC
The operators of a massive real estate investment coaching scheme face permanent bans and will pay approximately $12 million for consumer redress as part of a settlement in a lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission and the Utah Department of Commerce Division of Consumer Protection (UDCP).
The FTC and UDCP alleged that Zurixx, LLC, its owners Cristopher Cannon, James Carlson, and Jeffrey Spangler, and a number of associated companies operated a real estate investment coaching scheme that sold live seminars and telephone coaching using false earnings claims that convinced tens of thousands of consumers to pay them thousands or tens of thousands of dollars.
Ascension Data & Analytics, LLC, In the Matter of
Ascension will be required to implement a comprehensive data security program as part of a settlement resolving FTC allegations that the firm failed to ensure one of its vendors was adequately securing personal data about tens of thousands of mortgage holders.