The investigations were prompted by the $761 million all-stock acquisition of Cendant Corp. by Homestore.com, which the company claimed would create "the largest... marketplace for home and real estate-related products and services on the Internet." The subjects of investigation included certain business agreements to be entered into by Homestore.com as part of the transaction.
In April 2000 the company acknowledged that the anti-trust division of the Department of Justice had requested information in order to ascertain the company’s position, although no allegations of illegal activity were made.
In a press release from Homestore.com announcing the results of the investigation, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Homestore.com Stuart Wolff said:
"Obviously, we're extremely pleased by the Department's decision to close this matter… We're proud of the hard work and innovation we have brought to the real estate industry and we will continue to focus on serving our professional customers and the consumers who use our products and services."