Homebuyers claim Zillow agents steered them away from more affordable mortgage options

Zillow class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: A Washington federal judge consolidated two class action lawsuits against Zillow.
• Why: The class actions allege Zillow paid kickbacks to brokers for referrals to its own mortgage services.
• Where: The Zillow class action lawsuits were filed in Washington federal court.

A Washington federal judge has consolidated two class action lawsuits alleging Zillow paid kickbacks to brokers for referrals to its own mortgage services, among other anticompetitive conduct using company agents.

U.S. District Judge James L. Robart appointed Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP and DiCello Levitt LLP as interim co-lead counsel over the consolidated claims, Law360 reports.

In a Dec. 10 order, Judge Robart consolidated the lawsuits, filed by lead plaintiffs Alucard Taylor in September and Araba Armstrong in November.

“Given Zillow’s huge presence in the real estate market and the importance of fair pricing to home buyers, we are pleased to be co-leading this important case with DiCello Levitt,” Steve Berman of Hagens Berman said in a statement, Law360 reports.

Zillow class action claims company directed home buyers to its own mortgage services

Armstrong claims in her November lawsuit that a real estate agent who was part of Zillow’s Premier Agent program directed her to take out a mortgage loan from Zillow Home Loans when she bought an Alaska residential property in 2024.

The Premier Agent program allows participating agents and brokers to pay for or earn access to homebuyer inquiries on the Zillow website, according to Armstrong’s lawsuit.

Armstrong claims her agent pushed her to use Zillow’s loan program, even though she could have used a more affordable option, such as a loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to the Law360 report.

Taylor, meanwhile, claims he was browsing on Zillow when he clicked a button to “contact agent,” believing he would be connected with a listing agent for the property he was looking at.

He claims an agent affiliated with Zillow contacted him and that he never believed he had an option to use an agent other than the one provided by Zillow. Taylor argues the home seller could have paid less in commissions and set a lower purchase price. 

What do you think of the allegations made in this Zillow class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Jason T. Dennett and Rebecca L. Solomon of Tousley Brain Stephens PLLC; Adam J. Levitt, Amy E. Keller, Corban Rhodes and Emma Bruder of DiCello Levitt LLP; Jerrod C. Patterson and Steve W. Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP and Douglas James McNamara of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC.

The Zillow hidden fees class action lawsuit is Taylor v. Zillow Group Inc., et al., Case No. 25-cv-01818, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

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