Key facts
- Compass said the complaint cites information about for-sale homes, not rental listings.
- Compass said it does not own rental properties or set rental prices.
- Compass said Zillow and StreetEasy dominate the online listing-search market.
- Compass said New York City's FARE Act, implemented in June 2025, drove the drop in visible rental inventory.
- Compass said it has no legal obligation to share its listings with platforms like StreetEasy.
- Compass asked the court to stay discovery while the dismissal motion is pending.
Compass International Holdings is seeking to dismiss an antitrust lawsuit alleging that it created a monopoly through its acquisitions, which it used to harm consumers and competitors like Zillow when it pulled its rental listings from StreetEasy in early August 2026. The lawsuit, filed in late August, claims the removal reduced consumer choice and drove up rents and brokerage fees.
In a filing on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, Compass told the court it was seeking to dismiss the amended complaint with prejudice, which would prevent the plaintiff from refiling. Compass said the plaintiffs confused the residential sales market with the rental market, noting that the information cited in the complaint pertains to for-sale homes and not rental listings. The filing also said Compass does not own rental properties or set rental prices, and that Zillow and StreetEasy dominate the online listing-search market.
Compass said the plaintiff cannot demonstrate that its alleged conduct caused his higher rent. It said rental inventory in New York City began to decline seven months before its acquisition of Anywhere and more than a year before Compass began instructing agents to pull rental listings from StreetEasy. Compass pointed instead to the June 2025 implementation of New York City's Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses (FARE) Act, which prohibits brokers hired by landlords from charging broker fees to tenants and requires landlords to disclose applicable fees before a lease is signed, as the reason behind the drop in visible inventory.
Compass also said it does not have monopoly power in the rental listings market and has no legal obligation to share its listings with platforms like StreetEasy. According to a notice on the court docket, the plaintiff has until December 8, 2026, to respond to the motion. Compass is also asking the court to stay discovery while the motion is pending, and the court has not yet ruled on that request.