Nine prominent landlords and a software company engaged in a price-fixing operation that led to “astronomical” apartment rent hikes in Arizona’s two largest metro areas, Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office alleged in a lawsuit filed Wednesday.The lawsuit alleges that Texas-based software company RealPage, Inc., which works for landlords to collect data on the rental market, and the multi-family landlords conspired to drive up costs.Mayes said in a statement the companies had “directly contributed to Arizona’s affordable housing crisis.” The companies “stifled fair competition and essentially established a rental monopoly in our state’s two largest metro areas. RealPage and its co-defendants must be held accountable for their role in the astronomical rent increases forced on Arizonans.”Metro Phoenix rents saw a 30% increase in 2021, the highest in the nation. Many tenants saw increases of hundreds of dollars a month when trying to renew in 2022, and this year renters are getting a small break as median monthly rates have decreased slightly.Metro Phoenix rents fell 5%:Here’s where costs for tenants are down the mostAccording to the Mayes’ office, RealPage gathers private data on pricing and occupancy from competitors offering apartment leases and then directs participating competitors “which units to rent and at what price.”That collaboration violates the Arizona Uniform State Antitrust Act, which restricts conspiracies that restrain trade and monopolies, and the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act, which prohibits deceptive and unfair practices and concealing “material facts in connection with a sale,” according to the lawsuit.Lawsuits against RealPage and landlords have been brought several times before in other states. Twenty-one federal cases were consolidated together in Nashville, Tennessee, and another was filed in Washington, D.C., late last year.RealPage denied the allegations in both cases. The company, and Arizona landlords named in Mayes’ lawsuit, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The landlords named in the Arizona lawsuit are:Apartment Management Consultants, L.L.C.Avenue5 Residential, L.L.C.BH Management Services, L.L.C.Camden Property TrustCrow Holdings, L.P / Trammell Crow ResidentialGreystar Management Services, L.P.HSL Properties, Inc.RPM Living, L.L.CWeidner Property Management, L.L.C.Reach reporter Stacey Barchenger at stacey.barchenger@arizonarepublic.com or 480-416-5669. …
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