Senators Warren, Wyden Push DOJ, FTC to Closely Scrutinize Massive Compass-Anywhere Real Estate Merger, Raise Alarm on Housing Costs

Senators Warren, Wyden Push DOJ, FTC to Closely Scrutinize Massive Compass-Anywhere Real Estate Merger, Raise Alarm on Housing Costs

As Americans face a housing affordability crisis, key Democratic Senators warn that merger could increase costs.

"DOJ and FTC should thoroughly investigate whether this merger threatens competition and undermines transparency, and block it if it is not consistent with antitrust law."

Text of Letter (PDF)

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, wrote to Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Chairman Andrew Ferguson of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), urging them to closely scrutinize the proposed $1.6 billion merger between real estate brokerage giants Compass, Inc. ("Compass") and Anywhere Real Estate, Inc. ("Anywhere").

"The Compass-Anywhere merger threatens to stifle consumer choice and fair industry competition while entrenching existing antitrust and price manipulation concerns that have been at the center of mounting litigation. These risks demand close scrutiny under federal antitrust laws," wrote the lawmakers.

On September 22, 2025, Compass and Anywhere (the parent of real estate brands Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Corcoran, Sotheby's International Realty, and more) announced a merger agreement valued at roughly $1.6 billion. The combined firm would represent the largest agent network in the country, with approximately 340,000 real estate agents operating under Compass and Anywhere's brands.

"The combined reach of Compass and Anywhere gives them outsized influence over market practices at a time when the brokerage industry is rapidly consolidating," wrote the lawmakers. "The proposed Compass-Anywhere merger could substantially increase market concentration, possibly in violation of federal antitrust laws, and in a way that DOJ and FTC merger guidelines recognize could lead to anticompetitive harm."

The Senators also highlighted housing discrimination concerns. Compass has driven an industry shift towards private listing practices, also known as pocket listings, that are not made available to every agent or consumer. Experts find that pocket listings may perpetuate housing discrimination prohibited under the federal Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, and make potential discrimination harder to detect. These practices also hurt homeowners by limiting the pool of potential buyers and diminishing their earnings on home equity.

"Allowing Compass and Anywhere to merge is likely to significantly expand the use of these private exclusives, posing both antitrust and civil rights concerns," continued the lawmakers. "It is clear that a Compass-Anywhere merger, which comes on the coattails of the Rocket-Redfin merger announcement, will only perpetuate the industry's race to the bottom and further consolidate market control that weakens consumers' fair and open access to real estate listings."

Additionally, the merger could weaken smaller firms' and new entrants' ability to compete on equal footing, placing pressure on mom-and-pop agents and independent brokerages that play a vital role in serving local communities and offering lower-cost, consumer-friendly alternatives.

"The Compass-Anywhere merger threatens to stifle consumer choice and fair industry competition while entrenching existing antitrust and price manipulation concerns that have been at the center of mounting litigation," the senators concluded. "These risks demand close scrutiny under federal antitrust laws."

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