FTC Eyeing Deceptive Mortgage Ads

The Federal Trade Commission has stepped up its surveillance of deceptive mortgage advertising, and it has warned 200 mortgage brokers, lenders, and media outlets to be careful about touting low interest rates without adequate disclosures."Many mortgage advertisers are making potentially deceptive claims about incredibly low rates and payments without telling consumers the whole story -- for example, that these low rates and payments apply for a short period only and can go up substantially after the loan's introductory period," said Lydia Parnes, the FTC's consumer protection director. In June, the FTC conducted a nationwide review of mortgage advertisements that might be deceptive or violate the Truth in Lending Act. Many advertisements touted rates as low as 1% but failed to adequately disclose the actual interest rate on the mortgage or the annual percentage rate, the FTC said.