RealPage's Rent Pricing Software: A Digital Predator?

In the post-pandemic world, renters have witnessed a sharp increase in their monthly payments, leaving many to wonder why, especially when construction is booming in North Texas. Population growth may be a factor, but the Department of Justice has raised concerns about a Richardson-based real estate company, RealPage, and its alleged predatory practices. The DOJ's lawsuit against RealPage accuses the company of violating antitrust laws by acting as a middleman for landlords in a scheme to fix apartment prices. RealPage's software collects private, granular data from landlords, including lease terms, transactions, and future apartment availability, and uses an algorithm to recommend prices to landlords based on their competitors' information. Federal prosecutors argue that this is not how a free market operates. Landlords should compete based on merit, not coordinate pricing. RealPage, however, claims 80% of the market and denies any wrongdoing. The company argues that the DOJ wants to 'scapegoat pro-competitive technology that has been used responsibly for years.' But should we be concerned about whether technology is enabling and normalizing behavior that we would otherwise find unacceptable in human actors?

RealPage's software has been shown to drive up rents and discourage renter-friendly incentives like a free month's rent. As ProPublica reported, one of RealPage's lead scientists, Jeffrey Roper, stated that the software was designed to 'get pricing off-site' to reduce empathy. While landlords have '100% discretion' to accept or reject RealPage's recommendations, federal prosecutors argue that the software requires landlords to justify any rejection, creating an extra burden. Since 2019, U.S. rents have grown 30%, according to an analysis by real estate listing companies Zillow and StreetEasy. While supply and demand may drive up prices, a faceless algorithm distorting the market is a different matter. This debate highlights another failure by lawmakers to address the impact of technology on our lives. Soon, Americans may not be able to afford the cost of

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