Greystar, which manages nearly 950,000 apartments, has agreed to stop using “anti-competitive” algorithms to suggest rents. ProPublica previously showed how such software lets landlords set rents in a way that could result in cartel-like behavior.| ProPublica
An investigation has been called for over RealPage rent-setting software and if it is helping landlords coordinate rental pricing| Rental Housing Journal
Texas-based RealPage worked with some of the nation’s largest landlords to create a cartel to raise rents, says a lawsuit filed just days after ProPublica published its investigation into the company.| ProPublica
The DOJ will examine whether RealPage helped landlords coordinate rent increases. Questions also swirl around a 2017 merger deal with its largest competitor.| ProPublica
The lawsuit, which comes in the wake of a ProPublica investigation into the Texas company, accuses RealPage of taking part in an illegal price-fixing scheme to reduce competition among landlords to boost prices — and profits.| ProPublica
Sen. Amy Klobuchar and other leading Democrats have asked the Department of Justice to examine Texas-based RealPage, which sells software to help landlords set apartment rental prices across the country.| ProPublica
RealPage has come under increasing fire from lawmakers and lawyers after ProPublica reported on its software’s potentially anti-competitive effects. Student housing is implicated.| ProPublica
The Antitrust Division finally sued RealPage for orchestrating a conspiracy among corporate landlords and illegally hiking rents for millions in cities across the country.| www.thebignewsletter.com
After a ProPublica investigation, U.S. senators introduced a bill to curb “price fixing” linked to rent-setting software. “Setting prices with an algorithm is no different from doing it over cigars and whiskey in a private club,” said one sponsor.| ProPublica
A ProPublica investigation last year about RealPage’s rent-setting software led to federal lawsuits asserting inflated apartment prices.| ProPublica
The U.S. government is warning that smart locks securing entry to an estimated 50,000 dwellings nationwide contain hard-coded credentials that can be used to remotely open any of the locks. The lock's maker Chirp Systems remains unresponsive, even though it…| krebsonsecurity.com
Software-enabled price fixing schemes are pervasive in the economy, and are likely driving high prices. Why is it so hard to challenge these conspiracies under antitrust law?| www.thebignewsletter.com
Or: How to challenge a potential rental housing cartel| boondoggle.substack.com
The FTC won a huge merger case yesterday to cap off the year. Plus, major decisions on crypto and private equity.| www.thebignewsletter.com