Tenants and a top prosecutor have accused major landlords and a popular apartment-pricing site of colluding to inflate rents. A legal expert says it shows algorithmic collusion is no longer 'science fiction.'

Wed, 11/15/2023 - 06:07

A sign is posted in front of an apartment building with available rentals on June 09, 2023 in San Francisco, California. — Rent-settling algorithms used by landlords nationwide may be artificially increasing rents above market rates.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Some big landlords are using algorithmic pricing systems to set rents — and it might be illegal.
RealPage, which sells rent-setting software, and its clients are facing a slew of lawsuits.
The DC attorney general is the latest to allege illegal collusion to set artificially high rents.

You're probably aware that a severe housing shortage has driven rents and home prices through the roof in recent years. Now, several lawsuits filed across the country contend that the algorithmic software some big landlords use to determine rents has artificially inflated prices.