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With Shared Software, Landlords Are Teaming Up to Raise Rents
San Francisco has banned RealPage, a software company that computer-generates recommended rents for landlord clients in what some are calling a price-fixing scheme. It’s a step toward curbing rent-raising collusion between landlords.
To arrive at a recommended rent, the software deploys an algorithm — a set of mathematical rules — to analyze a trove of data RealPage gathers from clients, including private information on what nearby competitors charge. Since housing in America is viewed and utilized as an appreciating investment, as opposed to a basic commodity necessary for maintaining the public good, all of the economic incentive is aligned toward pushing prices up rather than providing decent shelter to all. Efforts to build more public housing and provide more services for homeless people face similar obstacles, rooted in a reluctance to lower the cost of renting or owning a home.
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