A recently filed lawsuit by the state of Maryland claims that RealPage and eight of the largest residential landlords in Maryland colluded to illegally raise rents for thousands of Maryland residents.
Court documents allege that landlords allowed RealPage to set rent prices and that the company used a centralized pricing algorithm to inflate prices, which cost renters millions of dollars.
RealPage, according to authorities, offers a variety of technology-based services to real estate owners and property managers.
The lawsuit claims that RealPage and the landlords worked together to use RealPage's revenue management technology to drive rents above competitive rates.
Those landlords include:
- Morgan Properties Management Company, LLC
- Bozzuto Management Company
- Greystar Management Services, LLC
- AvalonBay Communities, Inc.
- UDR, Inc.
- Highmark Residential, LLC
“RealPage and the named landlords worked together to raise the cost of their apartments, making it hard for Maryland renters to put a roof over their heads,” said Attorney General Anthony Brown. “Our Office is committed to holding landlords accountable so Marylanders can afford their rent.”
Just days ago, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the apartment companies on the same basis.
Court documents for that suit allege that the companies used each other's competitively sensitive information through common pricing algorithms to set their rents.
RELATED: 6 major apartment companies sued by Justice Department
According to a press release, Attorney General Brown seeks to:
- Stop RealPage and the defendant landlords from engaging in anticompetitive behaviors that inflate rent prices for Maryland tenants;
- Appoint a corporate monitor to ensure that RealPage and the defendant landlords do not engage in further anticompetitive misconduct; and
- Secure monetary refunds for the State of Maryland and for Maryland residents whose rents were unlawfully raised.
