Do you or did you since 2010 rent an apartment in a college town maintained by one of the following companies, or another large property management company?
American Campus Communities, BH Management, CA Ventures, Campus Advantage, Cardinal Group, Cushman & Wakefield, Greystar, Interstate Realty Management or The Preiss Company
Attorneys have filed a lawsuit over inflated costs for college student rent payers. Fill out the form to find out your rights »
01/13/23 | Hagens Berman Appointed to Case Leadership Position
U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik issued an order appointing Hagens Berman interim class counsel for the student housing class. “The Court finds that appointing Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP as interim class counsel for the student housing class will aid in achieving efficiency and economy in what is likely to be expensive and complicated litigation, and that such appointment will enhance fairness to all parties concerned, as well as the proposed class,” Lasnik wrote in his Jan. 13, 2023 order.
The firm’s managing partner and cofounder, Steve Berman, said, “This case has the potential to have sweeping impacts for thousands of individuals who overpaid for student housing, and we are exceedingly grateful to have been appointed a leadership position in the fight against RealPage and its coconspirators. We look forward to getting to the heart of the matter and pursuing meaningful relief to combat what we believe is a widespread rent price-fixing scheme that harms students.”
Hagens Berman has filed a class-action lawsuit accusing the largest residential real estate companies – BH Management, CA Ventures, Campus Advantage, Cardinal Group, Cushman & Wakefield, Greystar, Interstate Realty Management or The Preiss Company, as well as other large property management groups – of colluding to artificially increase the price of rent in areas near colleges and universities. In this scheme, college student renters lose, and leases are increased to rates above what a free market would bear in college towns. We believe in upholding tenants’ rights.
HOW DO I KNOW IF I’M AFFECTED?
The residential real estate companies named in this lawsuit maintain properties across the U.S, and college towns have been particularly affected by their rent-increasing scheme. If your apartment is maintained by one of the following companies, or another large property management company, fill out the form to find out your rights »
- American Campus Communities
- BH Management
- CA Ventures
- Campus Advantage
- Cardinal Group
- Cushman & Wakefield
- Greystar
- Interstate Realty Management
- The Preiss Company
YOUR TENANT RIGHTS
Your rights as a renter include a fair price for your apartment near the college or university you attend, and we believe these companies have violated federal laws in artificially raising the price of college students’ rent. You may have rights under antitrust laws to compensation for your losses due to this scheme.
RENTAL PRICE SCHEME EXPLAINED
Our legal team believes that beginning in 2010, real estate giants who lease apartments near colleges and universities began to work together to increase lease prices for renters in college towns. Instead of independently setting a price, they agreed to use a third-party pricing and data collection service, RealPage, to make unit-specific lease adjustments. RealPage also allows participating lessors to coordinate supply levels to avoid price competition. They made these changes in lockstep, forcing leases higher in a scheme designed to imprison renters who need access to housing near large colleges and universities.
HOW CAN A CLASS ACTION HELP?
Through a class-action lawsuit, individual student renters can collectively bring claims against large corporations who would otherwise have the upper hand. A class-action lawsuit seeks to level the playing field, bringing strength to collective action to change corrupt practices. Though these measures do not bring immediate relief, they are a time-tested method of holding companies accountable for wrongdoing in your rental market.
TOP LITIGATION LAW FIRM
Hagens Berman is home to some of the most well-respected and successful lawyers representing plaintiffs in class actions, and the firm has achieved $325 billion in settlements since its founding. The firm has taken on major institutions for fraudulent billing and predatory price-fixing behavior, including in the mortgage market, in Big Tech, and against utility companies, product manufacturers and other negligent parties. Your claim will be handled by attorneys experienced in this area of law.
NO COST TO YOU
There is no cost or fee whatsoever involved in joining this case. In the event Hagens Berman or any other firm obtains a settlement that provides benefits to class members, the court will decide a reasonable fee to be awarded to the legal team. In no case will any class member ever be asked to pay any out-of-pocket sum.
PRESS RELEASE: College Student Renters Take on Mega Property Management Companies in New Antitrust Class-Action Lawsuit
“There’s no mistake about it. This is a calculated crime. Two to seven percent increases may sound small, but they are designed to be just significant enough to be profitable but not too much to negatively affect the market’s ability to pay. We believe RealPage and its co-conspirators know exactly what they’ve done and have calculated precisely how much they can squeeze out of each college town’s rental market without breaking it entirely.” — Steve W. Berman, Managing Partner, Hagens Berman
