The Bureau will continue to closely monitor this critical sector of our economy to protect competition
GATINEAU (Québec), Competition Bureau
The Competition Bureau has concluded its civil investigation into the use of algorithmic pricing software in Canada’s rental housing market. It found that revenue management tools have not been used widely enough by landlords to substantially harm competition.
The Bureau found that revenue management tools from RealPage Canada, Inc. (RealPage) and Yardi Canada, Ltd. (Yardi) became gradually more common after their introduction in Canada. However, since late 2024, following public concern and scrutiny, landlords across the country have significantly reduced their use of these tools. Based on the Bureau’s analysis, the level of adoption did not meet the anticompetitive thresholds required to determine a violation of the Competition Act.
While the Bureau did not find sufficient evidence to conclude there has been an abuse of dominance or anticompetitive collaboration by RealPage or Yardi at this time, it remains concerned about the potential impact of algorithmic pricing tools on competition in the multi-family rental housing market.
Guidance to the industry
To support compliance with the Act, the Bureau is issuing guidance for landlords, property managers, and software providers. We encourage all industry participants to review this guidance carefully.
The Bureau will continue to monitor the rental housing market closely to respond to developments that have the potential to disrupt competition in this critical sector of our economy. If we find evidence of anticompetitive conduct, we will take appropriate action to maintain fair competition in the rental housing market.
For more details on the Bureau’s investigation and findings, consult our position statement.
Quick facts
- Yardi Canada Ltd. is an affiliate of Yardi Systems Inc., a software company headquartered in California, USA. Yardi offers a suite of products and services to assist in the management of real estate, including multi-family rental housing. It offers a revenue management software product called Revenue IQ (previously called “RENTmaximizer”).
- RealPage Canada, Inc. is an affiliate of RealPage, Inc., a software company headquartered in Texas, USA. RealPage provides a range of digital solutions for property management, including tools for pricing optimization in multi-family rental housing. It offers several revenue management software products, including YieldStar, AI Revenue Management, and Lease Rent Options.
- In general, this type of revenue management software uses an algorithmic pricing model that relies on data to provide pricing recommendations to landlords. Some versions of this software may pool competitors’ data to generate pricing recommendations and help landlords maximize revenues from their rental properties.
- From June to August 2025, the Bureau invited market participants to provide input on algorithmic pricing and its impact on competition. Information collected from this consultation will help inform the Bureau’s future work and priorities around competition and AI.
- In January 2025, the Bureau issued a report summarizing feedback on artificial intelligence (AI) and competition following its consultation.
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