RealPage goes from setting rent to collecting it

RealPage, the algorithmic rent-setting software company, has announced plans to acquire Livble, a service that lets people pay their monthly rent in installments.

Livble describes itself as a “flexible” rent payment solution. Renters can split payments into up to four installments throughout the month. The service bills itself as helping tenants “avoid late fees and credit card fees” as well as “build credit through rent,” but it charges $30 to $40 per loan. RealPage didn’t disclose the terms of the deal.

Under the deal, RealPage will integrate Livble into its property management software and will handle “all collections.” Last year, the US Department of Justice and several states sued RealPage over claims that it monopolized the market for commercial revenue management software used to set the price of apartments. The lawsuit alleges RealPage used nonpublic rental prices from competing landlords to inform its algorithm, which provides rental price recommendations for property owners.

George Slover, senior counsel for competition and policy at the Center for Democracy and Technology, calls RealPage’s latest acquisition a “bold move” given its existing antitrust battle. “I think it’s going to have to be reviewed by the Justice Department,” Slover told The Verge. “It’s really a question of whether they’re buying a potential competitor.”

In May, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (D-VT), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and others asked RealPage whether it had “potential involvement” in Republicans’ now-scrapped AI moratorium. They argued that RealPage would’ve benefited from a 10-year ban preventing states from regulating algorithms, as several local governments have already enacted laws regulating rent-setting software.

Update, July 18th: Added a statement from the CDT.