Canada’s Competition Agency says it is investigating whether artificial intelligence (AI) tools are being used by landlords to set higher rental prices.
“If we find evidence of activities that could raise concerns under the law, we will take action,” said Clau Bouchard, a spokesman for the department, in an email statement. I stated.
This is an issue raised earlier by the Federal NDP, where MP Bonita Zarrillo introduced the Bill C-423 in December last year. Part of this is related to landlord locking prices. The bill was given its first reading on December 11th.
Zarrillo said the NDP heard from Canadians who say landlords on this side of the border use similar tools.
“We started our research and what we found was artificial intelligence software that landlords at these companies can use to fix pricing,” she wrote an October 31 press conference. I mentioned it in.
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“I heard from tenants that their landlords were using this fixed price tool. we I heard it from tenant that the above In 15 building that They are know of where the There is Used, 15 landlord that’s right There is It is being used. ”
According to Zarillo, some NDP members have written to the Competition Bureau asking for an investigation. She also said that she raised the issue twice before the Congressional Committee, but nothing happened.
During a press conference, she called for an investigation into the issue.
“I want to know how popular this is in Canada,” she said.
Last October, Minister of Innovation François Philippe Champagne said he would write to the Competition Bureau to request an investigation.
The US lawsuit against Realpage was filed in August 2024. The U.S. Department of Justice has amended the lawsuit to include six more entrepreneurs who claim to have participated in the price-fixing scheme.
The software then makes suggestions to the landlord regarding the price based on the information received.
Realpage has been accused of using considerable datatrobes to maintain its monopoly in the market for commercial revenue management software. The Justice Department said it wanted to restore competition among state tenants across the country.
RealPage’s software tends to maximize price increases, minimize price drops, and maximize landlords’ pricing power. Realpage also trained landlords to limit concessions (free rent months) and other discounts, the government said.
“Realpage’s Revenue Management Software is purposefully built to be legally compliant, driving competition across the rental housing ecosystem and is highly configurable for our customers.”
Realpage also said that customers can accept or reject pricing recommendations.
In a report released in January, the Competition Bureau said that a complaint filed in the US on September 9, 2023 revealed that property managers in the multifamily housing market had decided to pricing and supply decisions to the algorithms. He said he claims it is being entrusted.
The Canadian media contributed to this article.
