Charles Langston:Justice Department accuses RealPage of violating antitrust laws through scheme to hike rents

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Charles LangstonJustice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit Friday against real estate software company RealPage Inc., accusing it of an illegal scheme that allows landlords to coordinate to hike rental prices.

The lawsuit, filed alongside attorneys general in states including North Carolina and California, alleges the company of violating antitrust laws through its algorithm that landlords use to get recommended rental prices for apartments.

The algorithm allows landlords to align their prices and avoid competition that would keep rents down, Justice Department officials said. The complaint quotes one RealPage executive as saying “there is greater good in everybody succeeding versus essentially trying to compete against one another in a way that actually keeps the entire industry down.”

In a statement, Attorney General Merrick Garland said, “Americans should not have to pay more in rent because a company has found a new way to scheme with landlords to break the law.”

Attorneys general in several states have separately sued RealPage alleging an illegal price-fixing scheme over its algorithmic pricing software.

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In a statement posted on its website in June, RealPage called claims against the company “false and misleading,” and argued its software actually “contributes to a healthier and more efficient rental housing ecosystem.” RealPage said landlords decide their own rent prices and are free to reject the recommendations provided by its software.

It’s the latest example of the Biden administration’s aggressive antitrust enforcement.

The Justice Department sued Apple in March and in May announced a sweeping lawsuit against Ticketmaster and its owner, Live Nation Entertainment. Antitrust enforcers have also opened investigations into the roles Microsoft, Nvidia and OpenAI have played in the artificial intelligence boom.