FTC plans to sue Greystar, manager of many metro Atlanta properties

The Federal Trade Commission plans to file a lawsuit against apartment management company Greystar, which manages thousands of apartments in metro Atlanta and Georgia.

Accused of deceptive pricing

The FTC accuses the company of hiding mandatory fees for renters and alleges it used deceptive pricing practices, according to Forbes. The lawsuit, which could be filed by the end of the week, claims Greystar falsely advertised rental prices by not informing potential tenants of mandatory fees ranging from tens to hundreds of dollars monthly, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources familiar with the investigation.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the lawsuit may also allege Greystar failed to disclose fees for services like pest control and trash collection to potential tenants. However, the Journal noted it is still possible for Greystar and the FTC to reach a settlement before the lawsuit is filed. Forbes has reached out to both the FTC and Greystar for comment.

Greystar manages properties throughout metro Atlanta, Savannah, and Augusta, with locations in Alpharetta, Brookhaven, Buckhead, Conyers/Covington, Decatur, Duluth, Downtown and Midtown Atlanta, West Midtown, Gainesville, Glenwood/Reynoldstown, Inman Park, Johns Creek, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville, Suwanee, Gwinnett County, Lindbergh, Loganville, Marietta, and Sandy Springs.

Some of Greystar's complexes include 1377 Brookhaven Apartments, 100 Midtown, 1133 On The Square in Midtown Atlanta, 505 Courtland, 550 Northridge in Sandy Springs, Advenir at Walker's Ridge in Cartersville, Andover at Johns Creek, Annabelle on Main in Duluth, Avana Acworth, Avana Dunwoody, Broadstone Junction in Norcross, Champions Glen in Union City, and Georgia Heights in Athens, among others.

Already targeted by DOJ

Greystar is also one of six large landlords named in a separate antitrust lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice against RealPage, a property management software company. 

RELATED: DOJ sues major landlords, including Cortland in Atlanta, for price fixing

The DOJ alleges the companies "participated in an unlawful scheme to decrease competition among landlords in apartment pricing, harming millions of American renters."

Atlanta