Two renters in New York City have filed an antitrust lawsuit against Compass (NYSE: COMP), accusing the brokerage of causing prices to rise by pulling its listings from Zillow (NASDAQ: Z) and its StreetEasy subsidiary.
Courthouse News Service reports Manhattan renters Peter Castaneda and Haley Gelfand filed their 33-page complaint in US District Court for the Southern District of New York. In their lawsuit, Castaneda and Gelfand claimed they were forced to pay an elevated price for a one-bedroom apartment after Compass pulled its listings off StreetEasy’s website.
Castaneda and Gelfand stated Compass controls more than 80% of Manhattan’s rental listings due to its years of acquiring competitors. They faulted Compass for requiring that its agents to remove their units from rival Zillow’s StreetEasy platform, thus creating a supply shortage that fuels higher prices.
“Compass, a titan of the housing industry throughout the entirety of the United States, is responsible for a conspiracy to monopolize and harm hardworking New Yorkers in the New York City-metro area,” they said, adding this “has intentionally caused an existential surge in the price of rental unit-specific apartments in New York City.”
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