On Friday, the government unemployment report proves a housing crisis created recession is upon us. A housing crisis triggered recession, sadly, I’ve been predicting for years.

This new unemployment report showed Americans out of work for at least six months (called long-term unemployed) increasing - attaining levels more indicative of recession than a “soft landing” or economic “slow down”.

I was interviewed last week by a reporter for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Bill Torpy, who published an article critical of “no-cost’ mortgage advertisers like Lenox Financial.

The FTC this week announced a “crack down” on mortgage advertisers who use deceptive language in there solicitations. This comes on the heels of a statement earlier in the summer by Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, that the Fed plans to make changes to federal rules on mortgage marketing by the end of the year. This action and announcement seems “consumer friendly” and all, but it really is just…too little, too late.

I see a commercial on TV for E-Agent.com.  Maybe you have seen them too…they have a big red circle with a lower case “e” in it.  It seems they are pretty new so don’t let them get any bigger!

Here is what they say on their commercial.

(TV marketing at it’s finest…)

1. Identify great deals

I notice a disturbing trend in the media and on TV in general. I first talked about this on our podcast for last week. It seems like when you hear the word “mortgage” on TV it always means something bad.

When people get taken advantage of it is by a “mortgage company”.

Mortgage companies who advertise on radio and TV about “no closing costs” or “$395 flat fee” are simply lying.

I know for many of you hearing an untruthful advertisement is no great threat, but for the proverbial little old lady or an unsuspecting first time buyer it truly is. I think with 2 trillion dollars in adjustable loans set to adjust over the next 24 months, you got hoodwinked by false advertising more than we’d all care to admit.

There is a new FTC study being quoted by bloggers all over the web and reported in major newspapers like the LA Times and Washington Post by real estate columnist Kenneth R. Harney who I must say when it comes to mortgage issues is more often wrong than right.

The study (if true) makes some amazingly ominous claims: