Georgia CommonsHouse · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HB 240: Mortgage lenders and brokers; prohibit unfair or deceptive practices in consumer transactions related to mortgage trigger leads
Last action May 13, 2025 · Effective Date
House Bill 240 would make it illegal for mortgage lenders and brokers to misuse 'trigger leads,' the credit reports generated when a consumer applies for a mortgage, to deceptively solicit that same consumer.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
When someone applies for a mortgage, the credit inquiry can trigger other lenders to receive a 'mortgage trigger lead,' a consumer report that lets them know the person is shopping for credit. Some lenders use these leads to call or contact the applicant directly, sometimes without disclosing who they are or offering the terms they promised. HB 240 adds a new section to Georgia's Fair Business Practices Act (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.20) making several trigger-lead practices illegal, such as failing to disclose the caller is not affiliated with the lender the consumer originally applied with, ignoring federal rules on prescreened credit offers, contacting people who opted out of such offers or the do-not-call registry, and advertising rates that the lender knows will later change to the consumer's disadvantage. The bill also updates Georgia's mortgage licensing law (O.C.G.A. § 7-1-1013) to add this trigger-lead misconduct to the list of prohibited acts for licensed mortgage lenders and brokers. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it.
What the bill does
- Creates a new unfair or deceptive practices law specifically targeting the misuse of mortgage trigger leads, which are credit reports generated when someone applies for a mortgage.
- Requires companies soliciting a consumer through a trigger lead to disclose they are not affiliated with the lender the consumer originally applied with.
- Bans using trigger leads to contact consumers who opted out of prescreened credit offers or are on the federal do-not-call registry.
- Prohibits advertising loan rates, terms, or costs that the lender already knows will be changed later to the consumer's disadvantage.
- Adds trigger-lead violations to the list of prohibited acts under Georgia's mortgage lender and broker licensing law, making violations enforceable against licensees.
- Sets the law to take effect immediately once the Governor signs the bill.
Who it affects
Mortgage lenders and mortgage brokers licensed in Georgia, consumers applying for home loans whose credit inquiries generate trigger leads, and companies that buy or use those leads to solicit borrowers who applied for credit elsewhere.
Why it matters
Homebuyers often get flooded with calls from lenders they never contacted after applying for a mortgage. This bill would give Georgia regulators a legal tool to penalize lenders who hide their identity, ignore opt-out and do-not-call protections, or bait consumers with rates they don't intend to honor.
Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new Code Section 10-1-393.20 defining 'mortgage broker,' 'mortgage lender,' and 'mortgage trigger lead' by reference to existing state and federal law.
- Section 1 lists four specific practices that count as unfair or deceptive when using a trigger lead, including failing to disclose non-affiliation and violating prescreened-offer disclosure rules.
- Section 1 states that violating these rules is punishable under the existing Fair Business Practices Act enforcement framework.
- Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 7-1-1013 to add trigger-lead misconduct as a new prohibited act (paragraph 12) for licensed mortgage lenders and brokers.
- Section 3 sets the effective date as the date the Governor signs the bill or it otherwise becomes law without signature.
From the bill
“Fail to state in the initial solicitation that the person is not affiliated with the mortgage lender or mortgage broker with which the consumer initially applied”
“Solicit a consumer with an offer of certain rates, terms, and costs with the knowledge that the rates, terms, or costs will be subsequently changed to the detriment of the consumer”
Discussed in meetings (1)
The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.
House Special Rules Committee, March 12, 2026
From 0:08:14 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter described HB 240 as changing Georgia's state flower from the Cherokee rose to the sweetbay magnolia and said its wording matched a measure already passed. The chair said the committee had approved the same proposal a couple of weeks earlier. With no substantive questions or debate, the committee approved a motion to pass by voice vote.
Status timeline
- Effective Date
- Act 177
- House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- House Sent to Governor (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- Senate Third Read (Senate)
- Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
- Senate Tabled (Senate)
Show full history (17 actions)
- Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Noel Williams, Jr. (R, HD-148)
- Jason Ridley (R, HD-6)
- Trey Rhodes (R, HD-124)
- Demetrius Douglas (D, HD-78)
- Scott Hilton (R, HD-48)
- Will Wade (R, HD-9)
- Matt Brass (R, SD-6)
Votes
- House voteFebruary 28, 2025
165 yea, 0 nay (6 not voting, 9 excused)
- Senate voteMarch 31, 2025
51 yea, 1 nay (3 not voting, 1 excused)
Topics
- mortgage lending
- consumer protection
- credit reports
- mortgage broker licensing
- fair business practices