FTC's Zillow-Redfin Settlement Treats Pay-to-Exit Deals Like Mergers, Demands Structural Fixes

The FTC settled its antitrust case against Zillow on August 24, 2026, unwinding a $100 million deal that paid Redfin to exit the apartment rental listing market. Beyond scrapping the agreement, the order forces Zillow to share employee data with Redfin and offer customers penalty-free contract renegotiation — remedies that reconstruct a dismantled competitor rather than merely prohibiting future conduct.