Introduction
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced a proposed settlement with LivCor, LLC, in a civil antitrust lawsuit targeting RealPage, Inc., and multiple property management firms. Filed on December 23, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, the agreement addresses allegations that LivCor violated Section 1 of the Sherman Act by sharing competitively sensitive information with rivals through RealPage's revenue management software and aligning rental pricing. The case, initiated on January 7, 2025, stems from a complaint accusing RealPage and landlords of distorting competition in multifamily rental housing markets. This settlement, if approved, would prohibit LivCor from using software reliant on rivals' nonpublic data, mandate antitrust compliance, and require cooperation in ongoing litigation against other defendants. It underscores federal efforts to curb algorithmic practices that may inflate rents, affecting millions of American renters amid rising housing costs.
Background and Key Players
The lawsuit centers on RealPage's revenue management products, including AI Revenue Management (AIRM) and YieldStar, which landlords like LivCor license to set rental prices. RealPage, a Texas-based firm, dominates the market with an estimated 80 percent share, according to its internal documents. LivCor, a Chicago-headquartered company managing over 150,000 units nationwide, has used these tools to inform pricing decisions.
The complaint details how landlords, including LivCor, provide RealPage with daily nonpublic data on leases, occupancy, and pricing. RealPage pools this information to generate recommendations, effectively allowing competitors to influence each other's pricing. As one RealPage executive stated, the software ensures landlords 'likely move in unison versus against each other,' promoting a 'rising tide' that lifts all rents. LivCor, as a major user, both supplied and benefited from this data exchange.
Relevant legal precedents include cases like United States v. Container Corp. of America (1969), where the Supreme Court condemned information exchanges that stabilize prices, even without explicit agreements. Here, the DOJ draws parallels, arguing RealPage's system subverts independent competition, echoing concerns in recent algorithmic pricing suits such as In re RealPage Rental Software Antitrust Litigation.
Political forces include the Biden administration's focus on housing affordability, with the DOJ's Antitrust Division emphasizing enforcement against tech-driven collusion. State attorneys general from North Carolina, California, and others joined, reflecting bipartisan concerns over rental market dynamics.
Alleged Violations and Market Impact
The complaint alleges two primary violations under Section 1 of the Sherman Act. First, landlords like LivCor unlawfully share nonpublic, competitively sensitive data—such as executed rents, lease terms, and occupancy projections—through RealPage. This data fuels algorithms that recommend prices, distorting market forces. For instance, RealPage's software uses competitors' information to set 'market minimum' floors, preventing price drops below rivals' levels.
Second, by licensing and using RealPage's products as designed, LivCor and others agree to align pricing strategies. RealPage encourages compliance through features like auto-accept settings and pricing advisors, who escalate deviations. A RealPage vice president noted the 'greater good' in landlords succeeding together rather than competing, a sentiment echoed in user group meetings where sensitive topics like concessions were discussed.
Market definitions focus on conventional multifamily rentals (properties with five or more units, excluding student, affordable, senior, or military housing). Geographic markets include submarkets and core-based statistical areas where penetration of RealPage products exceeds 30 percent, such as Atlanta's Buckhead or Austin's Downtown/University areas. In these, collective market power harms renters by inflating prices and reducing concessions, with no offsetting procompetitive benefits.
Short-term effects include stabilized or elevated rents in high-penetration areas. Long-term, unchecked practices could entrench monopolistic behaviors in revenue management software, where RealPage holds 80 percent share, excluding rivals without similar data access.
Perspectives vary: Industry advocates argue such tools optimize revenue amid inelastic demand, citing a RealPage economist's view that real estate is 'local, local, local.' Critics, including renter groups, highlight affordability crises, with 12.1 million households spending over half their income on rent in 2022. The DOJ balances these without endorsing either.
Details of the Proposed Settlement
The proposed Final Judgment imposes stringent remedies on LivCor. It must cease using third-party revenue management products by February 28, 2026, transitioning to a proprietary system that avoids competitors' nonpublic data in training or runtime operations (Paragraph IV). Any third-party product must comply with restrictions against data pooling or floors based on rivals' information (Paragraph V).
LivCor is barred from disclosing, soliciting, or using competitors' sensitive data for pricing (Paragraph VI), extending to communications like market surveys or user groups. It must purge existing non-LivCor data and adopt an antitrust compliance policy, including annual training and audits by a chief compliance officer (Paragraph VII).
LivCor agrees to cooperate in the DOJ's case against RealPage and others, providing interviews, testimony, and documents (Paragraph VIII). A monitor may be appointed if violations occur or non-certified products are used (Paragraph IX), ensuring enforcement.
Key Takeaways and Future Outlook
This settlement addresses core harms by isolating LivCor's pricing from rivals' data, potentially fostering independent competition. However, it applies only to LivCor, leaving broader industry practices under scrutiny in the ongoing RealPage litigation.
