Major landlord ‘cartel’ colludes to drive NJ rents sky high, officials say

Major landlord ‘cartel’ colludes to drive NJ rents sky high, officials say

A "cartel" of New Jersey landlords is conspiring to raise rents, Attorney General Matthew Platkin says in a new lawsuit. (NJOAG/Canva/Townsquare Media Illustration)

🔴 New Jersey says it has uncovered a rent price-fixing scheme

🔴 Landlords are accused of sharing private information with competitors

🔴 RealPage says officials are making tech a scapegoat

New Jersey officials say landlords who collude using algorithmic software, not mysterious market forces, are driving rents to unsustainably high levels.

Ten of the biggest landlords in New Jersey are sharing non-public data as part of a cartel, according to Attorney General Matthew Platkin. On Wednesday, his office filed a lawsuit claiming they violated the state's antitrust law.

According to the lawsuit, the landlords use RealPage to share that data and drive up rents to increase their profits.

"But what's the result for New Jersey's renters? Increasingly high rental prices and few, if any, options. RealPage and every one of the landlords knew what they were doing. They knew the harm they were inflicting on thousands of New Jerseyans," Platkin said.

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin speaks about a landlord "cartel" (NJOAG via YouTube)
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More accusations against RealPage

Last year, the Justice Department and attorneys general from eight other states filed a civil suit against RealPage with similar accusations of violating antitrust laws.

The federal lawsuit cited an email from a landlord who said they liked RealPage because it was "classic price fixing."

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On Wednesday, Platkin referenced the same email at a press conference.

In a statement, RealPage spokesperson Jennifer Bowcock said that Platkin was "recycling the inaccuracies of predecessor cases." Platkin's office did not try to engage with the company before filing the lawsuit, Bowcock said.

Build more housing to bring down costs

According to Bowcock, the company's software helps landlords follow Fair Housing laws, rent control laws, and price gouging laws.

She said New Jersey's claims were meritless and would not do anything to help bring down housing costs.

READ MORE: Builders sue 159 NJ towns to force new affordable housing

"New Jersey should stop scapegoating pro-competitive technology, and we encourage the state’s public leaders to focus on meeting the greater demand for housing with more supply," Bowcock said.

NJ towns that need to build the most affordable housing

These 33 municipalities have the greatest number of affordable housing units that should be built, according to calculations by the Department of Community Affairs.

The "present need" refers to existing but deficient housing occupied by low- and moderate-income households. "Prospective need" refers to the housing that would have to be built in the next 10 years to accommodate the estimated growth of low- and moderate-income households. The state used a formula that considers a municipality's income and land capacity.

The current housing and population counts are from the 2020 Census.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5

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New Jersey home price increases in 2024 by county

The New Jersey real estate market continues to chug along.
Below is a county-by-county breakdown of median home prices and how they much they jumped in 2024. Many counties saw double-digit increases in home values, according to the data from New Jersey Realtors from November 2023 to November 2024.

Gallery Credit: Rick Rickman

NJ towns that need to build the most affordable housing

These 33 municipalities have the greatest number of affordable housing units that should be built, according to calculations by the Department of Community Affairs.

The "present need" refers to existing but deficient housing occupied by low- and moderate-income households. "Prospective need" refers to the housing that would have to be built in the next 10 years to accommodate the estimated growth of low- and moderate-income households. The state used a formula that considers a municipality's income and land capacity.

The current housing and population counts are from the 2020 Census.

Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5

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