11 Major Apartment Owners to Pay $218 Million To Settle Rent Price-Fixing Suit!
Camden Property Trust, Equity Residential, and Lincoln Property Co. are among 11 apartment owners that agreed to pay more than $218 million combined to settle antitrust claims that they colluded with revenue management firm RealPage Inc. to fix rental prices across the US.
Equity Residential’s settlement is the largest among the deals at $56 million, followed by Camden and Mid-America Communities at $53 million each.
The class-action lawsuit had alleged that RealPage, along with owners and managers of large-scale multifamily residential buildings, used RealPage software in a nation-wide price-fixing conspiracy to inflate rental prices in properties that used the RealPage software.
Multiple class-action lawsuits were filed against RealPage, Inc. and approximately 50 of the largest owners and operators of apartment communities in the country.
Last year the Department of Justice and Texas software-maker RealPage reached a settlement in a case involving price-fixing allegations in some of the nation’s largest rental markets.
A 2022 ProPublica investigation showed RealPage was helping landlords decide rents in a way that legal experts said could result in cartel-like behavior.
From John Triplett, publisher, Rental Housing Journal
Redwood City Rent Control Returns To The Ballot Box
Despite a similar effort failing in 2024 after proponents did not gather the 4,839 valid signatures required to qualify for the ballot, this time, a coalition called Faith in Action Bay Area has successfully qualified a proposition for the November ballot that would significantly expand rent control, tighten eviction rules, and impose new fees on housing providers to fund a city-run regulatory program.
Key Provisions of the “Fair and Affordable Housing Ordinance”:
- Rent rollback and caps: Rents would reset to October 2025 levels, with future increases limited to 60% of CPI, capped at 5%.
- Expanded eviction controls: Just-cause protections would be broadened, with no-fault terminations triggering relocation payments of four times HUD fair market rent or $12,000 – whichever is greater – with additional amounts for certain tenants.
- New regulatory program: A Rent Stabilization and Tenant Protection Program would be created, funded by annual per-unit fees on housing providers.
- Enforcement mechanisms: The measure would authorize enforcement actions by tenants or the city, including potential damages and attorneys’ fees.
Blueground Rental Company Agrees to $1.2 Million Anti-Price Gouging Settlement with City and County of LA
The settlement is the result of allegations that the furnished rental company jacked up rents in the aftermath of the January 2025 wildfires. The deal, reached May 18, would route refunds to renters the city identified as overcharged and split penalties between the city and county.
Among the dozen instances of violations cited in last year’s court filing was the case of an apartment unit in downtown Los Angeles that listed for a monthly rent of $2,000 in December 2024, but hiked by 56% to $3,120 on Jan. 7, 2025, then reduced to $2,730 three days later — still 36.5% above the pre-emergency rate.
Blueground continues to operate about 600 fully furnished month-to-month rentals in Los Angeles and the surrounding region.
California Seeks Millions in Penalties From State Farm Over Wildfire Claims Mishandling
California is seeking millions of dollars in penalties from State Farm after an investigation found the insurance company was slow to investigate and underpaid claims from the 2025 Los Angeles-area wildfires, regulators announced Monday.
State Farm violated the law roughly 400 times in a sampling of 220 cases, including underpayment and slow or inadequate claim processing, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said. The maximum penalty allowed by law would be approximately $4 million if State Farm is found to have been “willful” in violating state law. Regulators may also temporarily suspend the company’s license, effectively prohibiting the state’s largest home insurer from writing new policies in California for a year.
State Farm handled about one-third of all residential claims filed after the fires, state officials said, and the department warned that thousands of policyholders may have been affected by the unlawful practices.
“Our investigation found that State Farm delayed, underpaid, and buried policyholders in red tape at the worst moment of their lives,” Lara said in a statement. “That is unacceptable, and we are taking decisive action to hold them accountable.”
In one case, State Farm waited nearly three months before beginning to investigate a claim. In another, the company delayed paying a customer for months while internally acknowledging the payment should have been approved.
The company additionally and illegally denied payments for hygienic testing related to toxins in smoke damage claims, according to the legal filings.
State Farm denied the allegations, saying in a statement “The threat to suspend State Farm General’s ability to serve customers over primarily administrative and procedural errors is a reckless, politically motivated attack that could ultimately cripple California’s homeowners insurance market.”
Lara. last year. approved State Farm’s request for a 17 percent rate increase for homeowners, and the company agreed earlier this year not to cancel any new policies in 2025 under a deal brokered with the department and a consumer advocacy group.
San Diego City Council Agrees to Lower Trash Fees for Single Family Homes
The San Diego City Council has unanimously approved a settlement that significantly reduces residential trash collection fees.
The agreement establishes the following fee reductions for standard trash service:
- July 2027: Monthly fees drop to $38.75 (down from the scheduled $55).
- July 2028: Fees adjust slightly to $39.91 (down from the projected $57.55).
- Inflation: Future fees cannot be adjusted upward for inflation.
In exchange for these reductions, opponents of the fees agreed to drop a lawsuit alleging the original fees were misleadingly estimated and withdraw a ballot initiative that could have repealed the fees entirely. The city will continue collecting the fee through property tax bills and will conduct an independent audit to determine precise service costs.
Bay Area Homebuyers with Low and Moderate Incomes Can Get Grants Under Just-Approved $100 Million Wells Fargo Fund
Many Bay Area homebuyers with low and moderate incomes are eligible for thousands of dollars in mortgage help from Wells Fargo after the bank agreed to set up a $110 million fund to settle claims that it harmed investors by conducting sham interviews with minority job seekers and discriminating against Black and Latino borrowers.
In May 2026, a federal court approved the $110 million settlement resolving claims that the bank’s directors breached fiduciary duties regarding discriminatory hiring and lending practices
The deal resolves claims in a lawsuit in San Francisco U.S. District Court by Wells Fargo shareholders. “These discriminatory practices have affected a significant number of borrowers and job applicants and caused Wells Fargo to endure costly regulatory scrutiny, class action litigation, and reputational harm, among other damages,” the lawsuit, filed in September 2022, alleged.
Under the settlement approved by a federal court judge, home purchasers who meet income criteria in Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, San Francisco counties, and dozens of other areas across the U.S., are eligible for up to $10,000 in down-payment assistance and up to $5,000 for closing costs if they obtain mortgages through Wells Fargo.
Berkeley is Requiring Home Sellers to Make Green Upgrades as a Condition of Sale
Berkeley’s Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO), effective January 1, 2026, mandates that sellers of single-family homes and buildings with up to four units complete a Home Energy Score assessment before listing and achieve a minimum of six “resilience credits” for energy efficiency and emissions reduction.
- Compliance Options: Sellers may complete the required upgrades (such as installing a heat pump, adding solar panels with batteries, or upgrading electrical panels) before closing to obtain a Certificate of Compliance, or they may defer the obligation to the buyer.
- Deferral Mechanism: If upgrades are deferred, the seller and buyer each contribute $2,500 to a $5,000 escrow deposit held by the city; the buyer must complete the necessary work within two years to receive a full refund of the deposit.
- Key Upgrades: A single heat pump HVAC system or heat pump water heater earns the full six credits required for compliance, while smaller improvements like insulation or EV chargers earn partial credits that can be combined to meet the threshold.
- Exemptions: Properties that are already all-electric, have existing heat pump systems, or are sold to first-time homebuyers in income-qualified programs are exempt from the upgrade requirements.
Replacing a gas furnace with a heat pump in the Bay Area can cost about $25,000. A heat pump water heater costs around $7,500. And rewiring an older house and upgrading the electrical panel so heat pumps can be installed can cost more than $40,000.
Since January, the city has received 80 escrow deposits, while 57 homeowners certified their prior compliance with BESO. Only nine applications for certification were for heat pumps installed this year in preparation of a sale.
Legislation Introduced Targeting Gaps in How Insurers Are Regulated and How Policyholders are Informed
Sen. Ben Allen (D-Pacific Palisades), whose district was among the hardest hit by the fires, is advancing legislation aimed at structural reform. The Senate Insurance Committee has approved two of his bills – SB 1209 and SB 1301 – both targeting gaps in how insurers are regulated and how policyholders are informed. The bills must now advance through other appropriate committees.
SB 1301 would require insurers to explain the specific reasons why a policy is not being renewed, and to give policyholders an opportunity to maintain coverage if they address the identified risks. California has the fourth-highest rate of insurance nonrenewals in the country, Allen’s office noted, and the FAIR Plan has seen its exposure grow 230 percent since 2022 as more homeowners lose private coverage.
SB 1209 would establish deadlines by which California-based insurers must resolve deficiencies identified during Department of Insurance examinations, with fines of up to $20,000 for those that fail to comply. The measure came in direct response to problems uncovered at the FAIR Plan: a 2025 examination found that fewer than half the recommendations from a 2022 report had been implemented, contributing to widespread claims denials and financial distress after the LA fires.
Bay Area Air Board Divided on Gas Water Heater Ban
At a meeting in May of the Bay Area Air District (BAAQMD), eight board members advocated for a pause or to switch to a voluntary program. But they were slightly outnumbered by 10 board members, who want to move forward with the rule after adding amendments, including delaying the start date from January to October 2027 and exemptions for homes that face high installation costs or low incomes.
The rule would deliver cleaner air and prevent up to 85 premature deaths each year, the district said. It is also costly: air district staff said the installation of an electric heat pump water heater would cost roughly $3,500 more than a natural gas version. Some homes may need to pay more for electrical work or space reconfigurations.
The exemptions could apply to nearly 38% of water heater replacements. Several board members pointed to these amendments as the best way to ease affordability concerns while also addressing health and climate goals. The 24-member board – consisting of Bay Area mayors, supervisors and other local leaders – will vote on the exemptions in a meeting in October.
Watch Out For IRS Impersonation Scams
from Peter S. Muffoletto, C.P.A.
Now that the main tax filing season is over, criminals continue to use IRS impersonation scams to steal money and personal information. Understanding how the IRS actually communicates can help you recognize and avoid these schemes.
The IRS generally initiates contact by sending a letter through the mail on official letterhead. If you have an IRS online account, you can log in to verify whether a notice is legitimate. If you are unsure, you can contact the IRS directly at 800-829-1040.
Scammers, however, often pose as the IRS in several ways:
- By mail: Fake letters may look official but include incorrect contact details or suspicious language such as “in relation to your unclaimed refund.”
- By email or text: The IRS does not initiate contact this way. Messages promising refunds, credits or urgent fixes often contain links to fraudulent websites designed to steal your information.
- By phone: Scammers may leave threatening messages or demand immediate payment using gift cards or other unusual methods—tactics the IRS does not use.
- In person: Unannounced visits are extremely rare. Most legitimate IRS appointments are scheduled in advance by letter.
If you suspect a scam, do not respond, click links or share information. Instead, contact the IRS using an official phone number to verify the situation.