Open Source: After rent lawsuits, which Triangle apartments have used RealPage software?

I’m Brian Gordon , tech reporter for The News & Observer , and this is Open Source, a weekly newsletter on business, labor and technology in North Carolina.

My first apartment in Durham was owned and managed by Greystar Real Estate Partners . The odds of Greystar being the landlord were fairly good; it is the world’s largest property management company, and across the greater Triangle region — from Chapel Hill to Wendell — the company oversees 104 housing communities . Liberty Warehouse in downtown Durham. The Dillon apartments in downtown Raleigh. Republic Flats in Research Triangle Park. And many more.

As a tenant, my involvement with Greystar ended with my security deposit returned. But as a journalist (and former tenant), I’ve been interested to see Greystar pop up in recent investigations and lawsuits that accuse many of the country’s biggest landlords of using an algorithmic software to increase rents in violation of antitrust law. The software is from the Texas company RealPage , and plaintiffs say landlords have embraced it to share what they’re charging tenants, then implementing this private information to fix prices rather than allow traditional market factors, like quality and vacancy rates, dictate rents.

In November 2022, a Charlotte renter named Lena Armas sued Greystar , claiming the firm used RealPage to raise her rent. Armas then moved to another Charlotte apartment with a different landlord she said also used RealPage. The case, which also names RealPage and several major management firms as defendants, is ongoing.

As of last Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice and the State of North Carolina are plaintiffs in their own lawsuit against RealPage. The complaint claims the company advertised its products as “driving every possible opportunity to increase price.”

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein joined the lawsuit as part of a bipartisan group of attorneys general for seven other states.

In a statement to the N&O, RealPage spokesperson Jennifer Bowcock said the company is “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.”

Greystar did not respond to multiple emails regarding its past or current use of RealPage.

The legal issues at play in these cases tie back to the Sherman Act of 1890, the backbone of U.S. antitrust law. And simply showing landlords used RealPage to raise prices isn’t enough for the government to win.

Scott Hazelgove, an attorney at Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton who focuses on antitrust issues, said in a phone interview that legal challenges to RealPage’s software and its usage by landlords will “have to prove the existence of an agreement.” An explicit agreement to collude or, in absence of a direct deal, evidence that landlords and RealPage had an inferred agreement on price.

These cases revolve around new technology, but the law that will decide them is plenty old.

“Courts have been dealing with these concepts for over a century,” Hazelgove said. “Just the nature of industry and economic activity has changed so much. And a lot of industries are relying on algorithms now.”

Lowe’s scales back DEI

Lowe’s became the latest, and one of the largest, U.S. companies to end certain diversity, equity and inclusion programs. In a memo to employees Monday, the North Carolina-based home improvement retailer said it started reviewing its diversity and inclusion initiatives after last year’s Supreme Court ruling found race-conscious admissions policies unconstitutional, the Charlotte Observer reported.

Most of Lowe’s changes limit its involvement in LGBTQ advocacy/awareness. It comes as the company faced activist pressure alleging its policies were overly “woke.”

According to the staff memo, Lowes will no longer participate in a survey from the Human Rights Campaign , an LGBTQ advocacy group. Nor will the company support community events not “aligned with our business” and focused on housing, disaster relief and technical education.

Lowe’s sponsored the 2023 Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade, and sponsored a booth and stage at this year’s pride event. Headquartered north of Charlotte in the town of Mooresville, the company joins Ford, John Deere and Harley-Davidson in narrowing its DEI practices. Lowe’s will also combine diverse employee group representation under one organization.

Clearing my cache

• Boom Supersonic completed its second test flight , Monday, taking its XB-1 test jet a tiny bit faster and a good bit higher. The XB-1 reached 277 mph and an elevation of 10,400 feet, both up from 273 mph and 7,120 feet during its inaugural run in March. Neither speed is supersonic, but the Colorado company intends to get there — from North Carolina.

In June, Boom cut the ribbon on its first “superfactory,” a 179,000-square-foot building at the Greensboro airport. Several more tests are expected before the factory opens.

• With their contract expired, AT&T workers continue to strike across the South.

• Raleigh is getting a new headquarters. The Israeli EV charging software company Driivz will base its U.S. operations in Raleigh, its parent company Vontier announced.

• Durham chipmaker Wolfspeed slid further on Wall Street this week, days after announcing plans to shut a factory on its main Triangle campus. In June, Wolfspeed also delayed its promised facility in Germany . Despite financial setbacks, Wolfspeed is optimistic its massive semiconductor materials plant near Siler City will deliver.

• Don’t sweat it. Carpe , a startup founded by a Duke grad and a UNC grad, has been acquired by the private equity firm Topspin Consumer Partners. The two founders started with an antiperspirant hand lotion and now say they have “multiple sweat solutions that has helped individuals manage their sweat and regain confidence.”
• North Carolina construction projects have been delayed this summer due to labor shortages, a new national survey found. The group behind the survey calls on the White House and Congress to allocate more money for technical training (vs. 4-year colleges) and to permit more legal immigration.

• Liquidia , a Morrisville drugmaker, on Tuesday called for a preliminary injunction over the FDA’s decision to grant a rival treatment exclusivity rights. As it stands, the Triangle company can’t gain final approval for its lead product Yutrepia until May 2025.

• We all know North Carolina’s MrBeast (and if you don’t, here’s a primer ). But I didn’t realize our state raised two other content creators who, according to a new Rolling Stone list , are even more influential. Those would be 46-year-olds Rhett McLaughlin and Charles Lincoln Neal III, better known as Rhett and Link . They grew up together in Harnett County, roomed together at NC State, and went on to launch the Good Mythical Morning show, which has nearly 19 million subscribers on YouTube.

But back to MrBeast . A handful of recent issues have dented the image of the world’s most popular YouTuber, with the Toronto Star even introducing him in a headline this week as “controversial.” In the latest development, MrBeast (real name Jimmy Donaldson) has reportedly hired a prominent celebrity lawyer to address a former employee who has been critical.

National Tech Happenings

• France has detained Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of the messaging tool Telegram , on charges he was complicit for his platform enabling crimes like drug trafficking, distribution of sexual material of minors, and for not cooperating with French law enforcement.
• The world’s most valuable company is getting a new chief financial officer. Long-time Apple CFO Luca Maestri will step down by the end of the year. Since he took the role in 2014, Apple’s stock has risen more than 800%.
• The California legislature passed a novel AI bill that would demand developers track what customers do with their artificial intelligence technology — and face hefty fines if their software causes damage.

Thanks for reading!