08-24-2024, 02:46 AM
Personally, I have never relied upon "apps" or the internet to find and secure a place to live.
But nowadays, it seems the younger generations do it constantly. Amidst all the apps is one that apparently helped landlords to "take the guess work out of determining what to charge for rent."
The algorithms used by the app (the "service") accumulates the 'proprietary' data of all their subscribers, and issues forth a suggested rate which guarantees they are charging as much as the other members.
From ArsTechnica: US sues RealPage, claims rental-pricing algorithm used by landlords is illegal
The United States today sued RealPage, alleging that the software maker distorts competition in rental housing by helping landlords collectively set prices.
"To ensure they secure the greatest value for their needs, renters rely on robust and fierce competition between landlords. RealPage distorts that competition," said the lawsuit filed by the US government and eight state attorneys general. In a press release, the Justice Department said that "RealPage's pricing algorithm violates antitrust laws."
Attorney General Merrick Garland delivered remarks on the lawsuit. "When the Sherman Act was passed, an anticompetitive scheme might have looked like robber barons shaking hands at a secret meeting," he said. "Today, it looks like landlords using mathematical algorithms to align their rents. But antitrust law does not become obsolete simply because competitors find new ways to unlawfully act in concert."
The article shows how reframing the 'objectives' of commerce can allow "price-fixing" to be morally justifiable... or as one member/landlord reportedly said:
One landlord observed that RealPage's software "can eliminate the guessing game" for landlords' pricing decisions. Discussing a different RealPage product, another landlord said: "I always liked this product because your algorithm uses proprietary data from other subscribers to suggest rents and term. That's classic price fixing." A third landlord explained, "Our very first goal we came out with immediately out of the gate is that we will not be the reason any particular sub-market takes a rate dive. So for us our strategy was to hold steady and to keep an eye on the communities around us and our competitors."
While defending it's successful practice, RealPage offered this lament:
"We are disappointed that, after multiple years of education and cooperation on the antitrust matters concerning RealPage, the DOJ has chosen this moment to pursue a lawsuit that seeks to scapegoat pro-competitive technology that has been used responsibly for years," RealPage said.
Which seems odd to me... if this practice is been "used responsibly for years" we simply must know where and who has been doing it... just to be sure... Hotels? Airlines? "other" rental companies... all not competing but cooperating against the consumers as a whole?
The US and states allege that RealPage violated Section 1 of the Sherman Act by unlawfully sharing information for use in competitors' pricing, and by entering into vertical agreements with landlords to align pricing. RealPage is further accused of violating Section 2 of the Sherman Act through monopolization of the commercial revenue management software market.
RealPage, which is also facing a ban on its software in San Francisco, said the lawsuit is "devoid of merit and will do nothing to make housing more affordable."
"...the lawsuit is "devoid of merit and will do nothing to make housing more affordable."... Spoken like someone who isn't hard-pressed to find somewhere affordable to live. GenZ is going to eat you alive. You reap what you sow.
But nowadays, it seems the younger generations do it constantly. Amidst all the apps is one that apparently helped landlords to "take the guess work out of determining what to charge for rent."
The algorithms used by the app (the "service") accumulates the 'proprietary' data of all their subscribers, and issues forth a suggested rate which guarantees they are charging as much as the other members.
From ArsTechnica: US sues RealPage, claims rental-pricing algorithm used by landlords is illegal
The United States today sued RealPage, alleging that the software maker distorts competition in rental housing by helping landlords collectively set prices.
"To ensure they secure the greatest value for their needs, renters rely on robust and fierce competition between landlords. RealPage distorts that competition," said the lawsuit filed by the US government and eight state attorneys general. In a press release, the Justice Department said that "RealPage's pricing algorithm violates antitrust laws."
Attorney General Merrick Garland delivered remarks on the lawsuit. "When the Sherman Act was passed, an anticompetitive scheme might have looked like robber barons shaking hands at a secret meeting," he said. "Today, it looks like landlords using mathematical algorithms to align their rents. But antitrust law does not become obsolete simply because competitors find new ways to unlawfully act in concert."
The article shows how reframing the 'objectives' of commerce can allow "price-fixing" to be morally justifiable... or as one member/landlord reportedly said:
One landlord observed that RealPage's software "can eliminate the guessing game" for landlords' pricing decisions. Discussing a different RealPage product, another landlord said: "I always liked this product because your algorithm uses proprietary data from other subscribers to suggest rents and term. That's classic price fixing." A third landlord explained, "Our very first goal we came out with immediately out of the gate is that we will not be the reason any particular sub-market takes a rate dive. So for us our strategy was to hold steady and to keep an eye on the communities around us and our competitors."
While defending it's successful practice, RealPage offered this lament:
"We are disappointed that, after multiple years of education and cooperation on the antitrust matters concerning RealPage, the DOJ has chosen this moment to pursue a lawsuit that seeks to scapegoat pro-competitive technology that has been used responsibly for years," RealPage said.
Which seems odd to me... if this practice is been "used responsibly for years" we simply must know where and who has been doing it... just to be sure... Hotels? Airlines? "other" rental companies... all not competing but cooperating against the consumers as a whole?
The US and states allege that RealPage violated Section 1 of the Sherman Act by unlawfully sharing information for use in competitors' pricing, and by entering into vertical agreements with landlords to align pricing. RealPage is further accused of violating Section 2 of the Sherman Act through monopolization of the commercial revenue management software market.
RealPage, which is also facing a ban on its software in San Francisco, said the lawsuit is "devoid of merit and will do nothing to make housing more affordable."
"...the lawsuit is "devoid of merit and will do nothing to make housing more affordable."... Spoken like someone who isn't hard-pressed to find somewhere affordable to live. GenZ is going to eat you alive. You reap what you sow.
