Highmark Residential, the Dallas-based multifamily manager owned by Starwood Capital Group, is a defendant in several active lawsuits, with the Highmark Residential lawsuits of greatest consequence being the antitrust cases accusing it and dozens of other landlords of using RealPage pricing software to coordinate and inflate rents. The company has also been sued over a fatal apartment gas explosion in Orlando, a fatal shooting at a North Carolina property, and employment discrimination in Texas, and is the subject of a law firm investigation into eviction-fee practices in North Carolina.
The RealPage Rent-Fixing Cases
The largest cluster of claims against Highmark alleges that it joined a “rental housing cartel” organized through RealPage, Inc., a Texas software company whose revenue management tools recommend apartment prices. Plaintiffs across multiple jurisdictions say Highmark and other landlords fed RealPage real-time, nonpublic lease data — executed rents, lease terms, and occupancy — and then followed the algorithm’s pricing recommendations instead of competing on price.1Housing Is a Human Right. RealPage Antitrust Class Action Complaint
Federal Class Action in Tennessee
Highmark is one of roughly 50 property management and ownership companies named with RealPage in the consolidated federal class action In re RealPage Inc. Rental Software Antitrust Litigation (No. II), pending before Judge Crenshaw in the Middle District of Tennessee.2Hausfeld. RealPage Federal Antitrust Class Action The complaints allege Highmark managed more than 79,000 multifamily units nationwide and replaced independent pricing with RealPage’s algorithmic output.
The case survived motions to dismiss in December 2023 and moved into discovery. On November 21, 2025, the court granted preliminary approval for 26 settlements involving 27 defendants, totaling $141.8 million plus cooperation and injunctive relief. The class covers people and entities who paid rent on at least one multifamily lease to a participating landlord between October 18, 2018, and November 21, 2025. The claims process has not yet opened, and the available record does not specify whether Highmark is among the settling defendants or remains in active litigation.3Robins Kaplan. RealPage Federal Antitrust Class Action
District of Columbia Attorney General
D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb sued RealPage and 14 apartment owners and managers, including Highmark, on November 1, 2023, alleging the group used the software to share competitively sensitive data and inflate rents in the District.4Multifamily Dive. AvalonBay, JBG, Highmark Face Antitrust Suit
In May 2024, Associate Judge Todd E. Edelman of the D.C. Superior Court denied motions to dismiss filed by Highmark and co-defendant JBG Smith, ruling that the District plausibly alleged a conspiracy in restraint of trade under the D.C. Antitrust Act.5Bloomberg Law. Price-Fixing Claims Against JBG, Highmark Are Valid, Judge Rules The court pointed to allegations that landlords signed “RealPage One Master Agreements” to share proprietary data and that an adoption rate of over 90 percent on suggested rents served as a “plus factor” supporting the inference of an agreement.6Wolters Kluwer. District of Columbia v. RealPage, Inc., Case No. 2023 CAB 6762 As of June 2025, the D.C. AG’s office had secured a preliminary settlement with a different defendant, William C. Smith & Co., while RealPage and other property managers continued to deny wrongdoing.7Reuters. DC Attorney General Inks First Settlement in RealPage Price-Fixing Lawsuit
Kentucky Attorney General
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman filed a separate federal antitrust suit on July 2, 2025, against RealPage and eight landlord defendants, including Highmark, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky (Case No. 2:25-cv-00093).8CourtListener. Coleman v. RealPage, Inc. The complaint says Highmark has contracted with RealPage for its “YieldStar” product since at least January 2016 and shared daily, granular, nonpublic rental data to receive coordinated pricing recommendations.9Kentucky Attorney General. Kentucky AG RealPage Complaint It alleges violations of the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, and Kentucky Consumer Protection Act, and seeks damages, restitution, disgorgement, civil penalties that can reach $10,000 per violation under state consumer protection law, and injunctive relief.10GovTech. Kentucky AG Targets Rent-Setting Algorithm in Lawsuit
Judge David L. Bunning drew the case, with Magistrate Judge Candace J. Smith handling discovery. In February 2026, Judge Bunning refused to dismiss, letting the suit move forward.11Law360. RealPage Landlords Must Face KY AG’s Antitrust Case
Not Named in the DOJ Case
Highmark is not a defendant in the U.S. Department of Justice’s own civil antitrust case against RealPage, filed in the Middle District of North Carolina (Case No. 1:24-cv-00710), which targets RealPage and a smaller group of landlords including Greystar, Camden Property Trust, and Cortland Management.12National Association of Attorneys General. United States and Plaintiff States v. RealPage In November 2025, the DOJ filed a proposed consent decree with RealPage requiring the company to stop using competitors’ nonpublic data in real-time pricing, accept a court-appointed monitor, and cooperate in ongoing litigation against property managers that used the software. The DOJ also closed its criminal investigation without bringing charges.13Federal Register. United States v. RealPage, Inc. – Proposed Final Judgment and Competitive Impact Statement
Woodhill Apartments Gas Explosion
In March 2024, Highmark was sued over a fatal gas explosion at the Woodhill Apartments in Orlando, a property it managed for owner SPT WAH Woodhill, a limited liability company linked to Starwood Property Trust. On March 1, 2024, resident Mikeanesha Moore returned to her unit and was severely burned in an explosion that investigators traced to an uncapped and unplugged gas line in the laundry room. Moore had lived in the apartment for 17 days. She suffered third- and fourth-degree burns over 40 percent of her body and died on March 10, 2024.14Multifamily Dive. Orlando Family Sues Highmark, Starwood Over Gas Explosion
Her husband filed suit in the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida on behalf of himself, Moore, and their three minor children, naming Highmark, SPT WAH Woodhill, and the Lake Apopka Natural Gas District. The complaint alleged that prior tenants had reported gas leaks for years and that management failed to inspect the unit or address the hazard before leasing it to Moore.15WKMG ClickOrlando. Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed After Explosion at Orange County Apartment The parties reached undisclosed settlements through mediation. The plaintiff dismissed Highmark and the property owner with prejudice on September 24, 2024, and voluntarily dismissed the remainder of the suit on January 6, 2025.16Multifamily Dive. Highmark, Starwood Settle Orlando Explosion Lawsuit
Paces Pointe Negligent Security Suit
In February 2020, the parents of Jonathan Swierski sued Highmark in North Carolina after their son was fatally shot in the parking lot of the Paces Pointe Apartments in Matthews in July 2019. The complaint alleged negligent security, claiming the shooting would not have happened if Highmark had maintained adequate security and lighting to deter crime. The plaintiffs sought unspecified compensation for pain and suffering, funeral expenses, and the lifetime income their son would have earned.17Burns & Wilcox. Property Owner Sued Over Fatal Shooting at Apartment Complex
Workplace Harassment Case
Former leasing manager Nicole Weston sued Highmark in 2024 in the Northern District of Texas, alleging sexual harassment by a coworker and a hostile work environment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. On July 7, 2025, Senior District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater granted summary judgment to Highmark, ruling the company was not liable because it lacked actual or constructive notice of the harassment. Weston had not told Highmark about the situation until shortly before she resigned.18Bloomberg Law. Case: Discrimination, Hostile Work Environment (N.D. Tex.)
Pending Florida Case and the North Carolina Eviction-Fee Investigation
A civil rights discrimination case, Vazquez Garcia v. Highmark Residential LLC, was filed in March 2026 in the Southern District of Florida and transferred to the Middle District of Florida in May 2026 after the court partially granted Highmark’s motion to transfer for improper venue. The case was pending as of the transfer.19PACER Monitor. Vazquez Garcia v. Highmark Residential LLC
The North Carolina firm Maginnis Howard has publicly announced an investigation into Highmark’s assessment and collection of eviction-related fees — filing fees, service fees, and attorneys’ fees charged after summary ejectment actions. The investigation focuses on evictions filed before June 25, 2018, when North Carolina law changed to permit landlords to recover certain out-of-pocket legal expenses. The firm says affected tenants may be entitled to a full refund of illegally assessed fees plus statutory penalties. No specific lawsuit or settlement arising from the investigation has been publicly reported.20Maginnis Howard. Investigating Highmark Residential