Raleigh -- October 5, 2026: A major bipartisan antitrust lawsuit targeting alleged algorithmic rent-fixing will proceed after a judge rejected software giant RealPage’s bid to dismiss the case. The ruling marks a significant legal milestone for North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson, the U.S. Department of Justice, and a coalition of state attorneys general seeking to dismantle software systems they argue have artificially driven up apartment costs.
The lawsuit centers on allegations that RealPage gathered nonpublic, competitively sensitive leasing data from rival property managers and fed it into proprietary algorithms to coordinate inflated rents nationwide.
“RealPage helped landlords rig the system and charge people more at a time when North Carolinians are already struggling to pay their rent,” Attorney General Jackson said. “They tried to get our case thrown out, but the judge just said no. We’ll continue fighting to shut this illegal scheme down.”
The Core Allegations
According to court filings, the scheme relied on a mutual exchange of private transactional data rather than open-market competition:
Sensitive Data Sharing: Participating property managers handed over nonpublic details, including upcoming unit vacancies, actual contract rents, and concessions or discounts offered to prospective tenants.
Algorithmic Price Alignment: RealPage’s software processed the pooled insider data to recommend specific unit prices designed to maximize revenues across competing properties, limiting normal price competition.
Marketwide Squeeze: The software utilized compliance features and pricing advisors to push landlords to adopt the automated recommendations, depriving renters of the ability to negotiate or comparison-shop for cheaper alternatives.
Landlord Settlements and Ongoing Enforcement
The legal action originated in 2024 and expanded in January 2025 when regulators added six major property management companies as defendants: Greystar Real Estate Partners, Blackstone’s LivCor, Camden Property Trust, Cushman & Wakefield/Pinnacle, Willow Bridge Property Company, and Cortland Management.
Jackson has secured agreements with several key operators in North Carolina:
LivCor Settlement: A bipartisan $7 million deal with the landlord, which oversees approximately 3,500 apartments across North Carolina, requires the company to halt the use of nonpublic rival data for rent setting.
Earlier Agreements: Prior settlements with Greystar and Cortland—the first- and second-largest multi-family housing operators in the state—prohibiting anticompetitive data exchange practices.
North Carolina remains partnered with the Department of Justice and state attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oregon, and Tennessee in pressing the case. to permanently outlaw algorithmic price-fixing arrangements across the rental housing sector.