A series of lawsuits across the U.S. allege that RealPage, a Texas-based software company, enabled landlords to use data to get rental price suggestions which has increased rents everywhere. The software allows landlords to share rental data and use algorithms to set higher rents, which violate the federal antitrust law. Plaintiffs argue that this led to inflated rents worldwide. According to Zillow, annual rent growth peaked at nearly 16 percent in 2022. RealPage denied these allegations, stating that their software helps manage rents and that housing shortages are the reason for increased prices. The Justice Department’s antitrust division filed a brief in November in support of the renters’ case. Some state attorneys launched investigations and lawsuits. Brian Schwalb, Attorney General of the District of Columbia says, “It’s a housing cartel, and that housing cartel is resulting in already high market rents in our city being even higher.” https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/19/business/economy/rent-prices-realpage-lawsuit.html
Landlords Using Software to Raise Rent
