Rocket Homes and The Jason Mitchel Group were sued by the consumer financial protection agency Monday over allegations of illegal kickbacks for mortgage, title and escrow referrals in violation of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and Regulation X, RESPA’s implementing regulation.
In a suit focusing on activity from 2019 to 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFBP) said Rocket Homes “pressured real estate brokers and agents not to share valuable information with their clients concerning products not offered by Rocket Mortgage, such as the availability of down payment assistance programs, which often save homebuyers thousands of dollars. It said the bureau is suing Rocket Homes, The Mitchell Group, and Jason Mitchell to stop the kickback scheme, provide consumer redress, and obtain a civil penalty which will be deposited into the CFPB’s victims relief fund.
Rocket Homes Real Estate, LLC is incorporated in Michigan and is an affiliate of Rocket Companies, Inc., which also operates Rocket Mortgage, the bureau said. It said Rocket Homes operates a referral network throughout the United States that matches consumers with real estate brokerages and that The Jason Mitchell Group is primarily located in Scottsdale, Arizona and has 45 affiliated real estate brokerages in 41 states and Washington, D.C.
In Monday’s filing, the CFPB alleges alleges that Rocket Homes violated RESPA by:
- Providing kickbacks in exchange for referrals: Rocket Homes gave incentives, such as home-buyer referrals and priority for future homebuyer referrals from the network, in exchange for brokers’ and agents’ mortgage lending and settlement service referrals.
- Requiring brokers and agents to steer consumers toward Rocket Mortgage: Rocket Homes required that the brokers and agents receiving its referrals “preserve and protect” the relationship between the consumer and Rocket Mortgage by steering clients away from other competing lenders and preventing brokers and agents from sharing valuable information with their clients concerning products not offered by Rocket Mortgage, including the availability of programs that provide assistance for a borrower’s down payment.
It also alleges that The Mitchell Group and Jason Mitchell violated RESPA through its participation in Rocket’s kickback and steering scheme. It said The Mitchell Group encouraged its network of real estate brokers and agents to engage in coercive tactics to get consumers to use Rocket Mortgage for their home loans. “Agents were trained to suggest that house settlements could fall through if the homebuyer wanted to comparison shop with Rocket Mortgage’s competitors,” it said.
Additionally, it said Jason Mitchell offered “Dog Bone” awards of $250 gift cards to the agents who made the most referrals to The Mitchell Group’s favored partners, including Rocket Mortgage and Amrock.
CFPB Files Lawsuit to Stop Illegal Kickback Scheme to Steer Borrowers to Rocket Mortgage
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