Penalty Amount
$3,000,000
Consumers Affected
1,821
The FTC is returning nearly $3 million to consumers deceived by the Golden Home Services mortgage relief scheme, which falsely promised to reduce homeowners' mortgage payments and prevent foreclosures. A federal court banned the companies and their operators from telemarketing and debt relief businesses and required them to pay millions. The refunds are being mailed to 1,821 affected homeowners.
The court banned the companies and operators from telemarketing and debt relief businesses, required them to pay millions of dollars, and the FTC is returning nearly $3 million to 1,821 affected homeowners via mailed checks.
In-house legal teams should review vendor agreements with mortgage relief or debt relief service providers, focusing on clauses related to truthful advertising, compliance with FTC rules on telemarketing and debt relief, and indemnification for deceptive practices. Customer agreements should be checked for clear disclosures about services and fees, and any clauses that could be interpreted as false promises. Employee contracts should include training requirements on regulatory compliance and prohibitions against misleading marketing.
Entity
Golden Home Services
Industry
Financial ServicesOfficial Press Release
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2026/06/ftc-returns-nearly-3-million-consumers-deceived-mortgage-relief-scheme
ftc california dfpi case leads ban against operators mortgag
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/02/ftc-california-dfpi-case-leads-ban-against-operators-mortgage-relief-scam-home-matters-usa
Federal Trade Commission Enforcement Page
https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement
"Golden Home Services"
"nearly $3 million"
"falsely promised to reduce homeowners’ mortgage payments and prevent foreclosures"
"banned these companies and their operators from the telemarketing and debt relief businesses"
"1,821 affected homeowners"
"California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation"
$750K
The FTC finalized an order against Vanilla Chip LLC (doing business as TruHeight) and its principals for deceptively advertising height-enhancing supplements for children and teens without scientific evidence. The company also used fake reviews and incentivized 5-star ratings. The order requires a $750,000 payment and prohibits false health claims and deceptive review practices.
$2.3M
The FTC alleged that RentGrow, a tenant screening company, violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failing to use reasonable procedures to ensure the accuracy of its reports, including by reporting duplicate records and failing to disclose data sources. RentGrow agreed to pay a $2.25 million penalty and is prohibited from further FCRA violations and from misrepresenting dispute outcomes.
The FTC and New York Attorney General took action against Handy Technologies for deceptive earnings claims and failure to disclose fees and fines that led to millions of dollars being withheld from workers' wages. The FTC is sending over $2.7 million in refunds to 62,893 affected consumers.
$35.0M
The FTC alleged that Hopper, a travel booking app, charged consumers hidden and pre-selected fees (Tip and VIP Support) without their consent, misrepresented the benefits of VIP Support and Price Freeze services, and failed to clearly disclose total prices. Hopper agreed to pay $35 million for consumer redress and is prohibited from misrepresenting fees under a proposed order.
$1.5M
The FTC finalized a settlement with Publishing.com LLC and its principals for misleading consumers about potential earnings from self-publishing products. The company will pay $1.5 million and is prohibited from making unsubstantiated earnings claims, failing to disclose refund terms, and misrepresenting endorsements and reviews.
The FTC is seeking public comment on a proposed policy statement addressing concerns that AI companies may be manipulating AI system outputs contrary to consumer expectations for objectivity and accuracy. The statement explains that such conduct could be considered deceptive under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The public comment period runs until July 31, 2026.