Greystar, Other Landlords Pay $141 Million to End Rent-Setting Lawsuit

Real estate giant Greystar and 25 other property management companies have agreed to collectively pay more than $141 million to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing landlords of inflating housing costs through rent-setting algorithms provided by the software company RealPage, R.J. Rico reported for the Associated Press (AP).

All companies involved deny wrongdoing but have agreed to cooperate with plaintiffs in the ongoing case against RealPage. (Photo: Propertyware, A Realpage Company LinkedIn)

Greystar, the nation’s largest landlord, would pay $50 million under the proposed settlement, which was filed Wednesday in a Tennessee federal court. The deal still requires judicial approval.

The companies also agreed to stop sharing nonpublic information with RealPage for use in its rent algorithm—a key provision, as plaintiffs claim RealPage used such data to help landlords coordinate pricing and push up rents.

“This represents a fundamental shift in the multifamily housing industry and will help reverse the type of anticompetitive coordination alleged in the complaint,” attorneys wrote in the settlement filing.

All companies involved deny wrongdoing but have agreed to cooperate with plaintiffs in the ongoing case against RealPage and more than a dozen other property management firms that have not yet settled.

RealPage and others are also facing an antitrust lawsuit filed last year by the U.S. Department of Justice and several state attorneys general. Greystar reached a settlement in that case in August.