Settlement in Multi-state Lawsuit Will Impose Strict New Limits on Rent-setting Algorithms

A group of nine states reached a $7 million settlement with apartment management company Greystar, who the lawsuit charged drive up rental prices using shared rent-setting algorithms. As Leslie Shaver explains in Smart Cities Dive, “The lawsuit alleged that the companies used RealPage’s algorithmic pricing software to share confidential information about rental rates and occupancy. This illegal coordination enabled companies to unfairly set rents in lockstep rather than setting prices independently, as competition laws require, according to the plaintiffs.”

If the settlement is approved by a court, Greystar will pay the states the $7 million and agree to strict new limits on the use of its software. The company will be barred from licensing or using revenue management products that use external non-public data to generate rental pricing, using “ any commercially available revenue management system that incorporates a rental price floor or a limit on rental price recommendation decreases,” and disclosing non-public data to other property managers.

The suit was brought on behalf of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon, and Tennessee.