example of documented essay pdf

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

MLA Sample Paper

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

This resource contains a sample MLA paper that adheres to the 2016 updates. To download the MLA sample paper, click this link .

Documented Essay Example, Topics, & How-To Guide 

What is a documented essay and what is the purpose of it? It is a type of academic writing where the author develops an opinion relying on secondary resources. A documented essay can be assigned in school or college. You should incorporate arguments and facts from outside sources into the text.

The components of a successful documented essay are as follows:

• A good topic;
• A well-developed outline;
• Thorough research of an issue;
• A flawless reference list.

For more information on the subject, consider the sections below prepared by our experts .

❓ What Is a Documented Essay?

📓 how to write a documented essay.

• 📚 Essay Topics
• 📝 Free Essay Example

🔗 References

A documented essay is a piece of academic writing that aims to consider a particular topic relying on a number of the most trusted secondary sources. This kind of essay is longer than a standard 5-paragraph essay. It highlights the spectrum of existing research in the field.

Of course, this work will be a bit more complicated than the papers you have written before. If you’ve seen documented essay examples, you understand that they differ from standard essays .

To write a documented essay, you have to do the following:

✅ Find Sources

Sources that you use when writing your documented essay are crucial for your success. You will have to work with primary and secondary sources, collect data from books and publications. Alternatively, you will come up with experiments and conduct surveys to get the necessary data.

• Investigate your issue as meticulously as possible. To make your paper strong and impressive, you have to consider plenty of sources and data. Prove the readers your excellence and professionalism.
• Use only academic articles and scholarly books. Select extremely carefully! All the supportive facts should be valid and directly correspond to your topic. When it comes to sources, pay attention to their credibility.
• Avoid using any info from random websites. Exclude Wikipedia and personal blogs from the list of possible sources. Official e-newspapers (New York Times, BBC), governmental pages (.gov), and educational websites (.edu) are considered to be trustworthy.

Finding credible sources can be a challenging task. So, try using online research tools to facilitate it.

✅ Outline and Write a Research-Based Documented Essay

The majority of students tend to underestimate the power of outlining. Don’t make this mistake! Consider the following tips on your essay structure:

• The sketch of your documented essay should include an introduction, a conclusion, and body paragraphs.
• The last sentence of an intro is supposed to be your thesis statement . It is a critical part of your research paper, so make it well-developed and concise.
• Each paragraph should have an introductory and concluding sentence. Such a frame will effectively structure your thoughts.
• While creating an outline, figure out your arguments’ order and choose the appropriate evidence for each point. Make sure your paper is structured coherently and logically.
• If you feel like something is wrong, take a note and consider rewriting it later, after the essay’s whole picture will be visible.

After completing the rough draft of the paper, start polishing it. Double-check all the citations. Make sure appropriate transitions connect the paragraphs. Trace the arguments and supporting evidence and check if they are logically structured.

Your documented essay should cover the research issue and state your position. Properly develop your ideas and support them by the valid evidence from outside resources. Every point has to be related to your thesis statement. Finally, the conclusion should open a space for further investigation of the issue.

✅ Document Sources

It is the gist of writing the documented essays. All sources should be cited and arranged into a Bibliography list . Make sure it is error-free and follows the essay format. Mind that you will have to learn the rules of MLA, APA, and some other citation styles. Every style has numerous formatting requirements, so students often get confused.

The primary tip is:

To ensure the flawlessness of your works cited list, carefully read the instructions of the essay format you are applying. Always follow the guidelines and double-check all the details. The creation of the reference list is quite a challenging task. Yet, if you are concentrated and careful enough, you will succeed!

We suggest you read articles about MLA and APA formats. They are the most popular citation styles, so you should find out more about their peculiarities.

In short, the bibliography lists will look as follows:

Check an example of a documented essay to see how an APA reference list looks like.

📚 Documented Essay Topics

Here are some examples of documented essay topics:

• The influence of different types of advertising on various age groups. 
• The influence of financial well-being on life quality. 
• The health risks of sugar overconsumption.
• Possible ways of dealing with corruption in developing countries. 
• Online banking : new opportunities or new threats?
• The installation of parents’ control on children’s smartphones : pros and cons. Is it worth doing?
• Ways to successful communication between managers and employees.
• Analyze the impact of organizational leadership philosophy on the company performance.
• Explore the specifics of real estate fund management.
• Describe the pros and cons of a diversified investment portfolio.
• Interconnection between global economy and business expansion.
• Discuss the advantages and risks of investing in the furniture business.
• Explain what made Asia Pacific multinational enterprises so successful.
• Analyze the crucial factors of the successful global entrepreneurship.
• Social media and its impact on teenagers lives .
• Examine the influence of culture on shaping human behavior and relationships.  
• Has culture really become a driver of urbanization?
• Describe the connection between the climate change and carbon dioxide emissions. 
• The influence of organizational politics on decision making.
• The role of Greenpeace in lowering the negative technological influence on the environment.
• Discuss the influence of family on eating disorders in children.  
• Explore the ways social changes can influence the environment.
• Analyze how air pollution influences the health of the New York City citizens.
• What are the core values of Chinese culture ?
• Impact of globalization on a country’s economy.
• Describe the advantages and shortcomings of random drug testing.
• Discuss the aspects of various theories of personal development .
• What can be done to prevent Netherlands from flooding? 
• Is it a good idea to decriminalize marijuana?
• Ethic al issues in ICT: disclosing personal information.
• Examine the influence of technologic innovations on business. 
• Analyze the impact of globalization processes on media industry.
• Is solar power a solution of environmental issues?  
• Describe the health hazards of having nightmares.  
• Discuss the pros and cons of international credit.
• Explore the influence of COVID-19 on the economy.
• Compare the differences in coffee culture in different countries.
• Connection between clean water shortage and the problem of poverty.
• Analyze the positive and negative aspects of a high nutrition diet.  
• Examine the effect of trans and saturated fats on human health.
• How the use of solar energy in China influences climate change.
• Is it possible to give up food additives completely?  
• Pros and cons of integrating bilingualism in early childhood education .
• Describe the peculiarities of native and non-native educators in language teaching.
• Can the design activism change society?  
• Discuss the role of social media marketing for business practices.
• Talent management impact on OCBC’s formation.
• Explore the advantages and drawbacks of social media .
• Do you believe that social media can be a tool to change the world?
• Analyze the pros and cons of genetically modified food.  

📝 Documented Essay Example

Are you looking for a research-based documented essay example? We have prepared one for you. Check it out:

The Obesity Epidemic and Its Complex Causes 

In recent decades, the obesity epidemic has become a serious problem for public health. According to the WHO (2016), there are just under 2 billion overweight adults in the world. More than 600 million of them are considered obese. These indicators testify to a severe epidemic caused by various reasons, including genetics, environment, and lifestyle.

Several genetic factors may predispose to the development of obesity. A cross-sectional observational study of 260 children showed that a family history of obesity is a critical risk factor for the severity of obesity in childhood (Corica et al., 2018). According to Tester et al. (2020), children gain excess weight due to the multiple genes they have, and these genes make them favor food and, thereby, have a higher caloric intake. Obesity-predisposing genes may as well persist into adulthood, causing some adults to struggle with weight management despite similar lifestyle choices compared to their peers.

Although genetics play an important role in obesity predisposition, extragenetic factors also contribute to its development. For example, long working hours can increase BMI due to reduced time for exercise and physical activity and shifting toward ready-processed meals and fast food (Courtemanche, 2009). Besides, the role of social networks and peer effects in increasing obesity prevalence cannot be ignored. Christakis (2007) emphasizes that an individual’s risk of weight gain increases by more than 50% if a friend becomes obese and by more than 30% if a partner is obese. As a result, many people suffer from obesity even though their family members or forefathers never had such a problem.

Obesity has become a big global concern in the 21st century. Now it is clearer than ever that the obesity epidemic is the result of a complex interaction between environmental influences, genetic vulnerability, and human activity. To solve this problem, public health professionals should develop effective interventions considering genetic and extragenetic factors contributing to obesity.

Thank you for reading, and good luck with your documented essay! Feel free to come back and check out our other academic articles, available on the blog. Share the article with those who might find it useful.

• The Documented Essay/Research Paper: Hunter College
• What is a Research Papeer: Online Writing Center, SUNY Empire State College
• 5 Steps to Create the Perfect Outline: Brandon Ramey, Herzing University
• Making an Outline, Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Research Guides at University of Southern California
• How Can I Find Good Sources for My Research Paper: University of Louisville Writing Center
• Share to Facebook
• Share to LinkedIn
• Share to email

What is a reflexive essay? If you have just received the assignment and think there is a typo, you’re in the right place. Long story short, no, there is no mistake. You actually need to write a reflexive essay, not a reflective one. The thing is that reflective and reflexive...

Fairies and evil spirits, noble kings and queens, beautiful princesses and brave princes, mysterious castles and abandoned huts somewhere in a thick a wood… This is all about fairy tales. Fairy tales are always associated with childhood. Fairy tales always remind us that love rules the world and the Good...

Subjective or objective essay writing is a common task students have to deal with. On the initial stage of completing the assignment, you should learn how to differentiate these two types of papers. Their goals, methods, as well as language, tone, and voice, are different. A subjective essay focuses on...

Writing All About Me paragraph is probably one of the most usual assignments. For example, students might write it when entering an academic institution. Such work gives an opportunity to introduce yourself, your skills, and goals. However, it is not the only possible situation.

Coral reefs can be called one of the most amazing things created by nature. These structures can be found in tropical and temperate waters. Like many other unique natural phenomena, coral reefs are influenced by human activity these days. This negative impact is one of the significant issues to consider when...

An ambition essay focuses on one’s strong desire to achieve success in one or several areas. It might be one’s career, finance, family, art, health, or all at once. Writing an ambition essay, you might want to consider your own life or examples from the world literature. You can describe...

The age of primary school students ranges from 5 to 11 years. At this stage of education, children start developing their writing skills. They make their first steps to analyzing and proving their points of view. Besides, they study how to write an essay for elementary school. Correctly preparing all...

Canadian identity is something that has become really important for many Canadians in the past fifty years. Canada is a big, multinational country with its own traditions, culture, and history. However, because of quite a large number of foreigners and even Americans, its culture and people are associated with the...

Let’s say you received a task to write an essay about cars. The topic might be interesting for you, but you may still have no idea how to organize your paper. Well, this article is for you.

Smoking can be viewed as one of the trendy habits. Numerous teenagers try it since they think that it is cool or can help them socialize. Often students start smoking due to stress or mental illnesses. But is it okay? Educators tend to give different written assignments, which may disclose...

Children have always been apprentices and servants all over human history. However, the Industrial Revolution increased the use of child labor in the world. It became a global problem that is relevant even today when such employment is illegal.

Nowadays, knowing several foreign languages is no longer surprising. For example, learning French is common for English-speaking countries. So, getting an assignment on this subject won’t be a surprise for a student.

This is a great blog! There are a lot of really helpful ideas. I am going to start writing my documented essay, and this post will help me. So thanks!

I’d like to share this post on writing a documented essay with my friends in college. Soon we have to write our documented essays, and your guide will definitely help us!

Tips for Reading an Assignment Prompt

Asking analytical questions, introductions, what do introductions across the disciplines have in common, anatomy of a body paragraph, transitions, tips for organizing your essay, counterargument, conclusions.

Evaluation Essay

Evaluation essay generator.

Creating an essay is a part of every student’s academic journey. There are different kinds of essays that can be a part of a  student writing  task. One of these essays is the evaluation essay. What can set apart an evaluation essay from various kinds of academic essays is that it can also be used in different undertakings within the corporate and professional environment. Evaluation essays are not limited to be used for educational purposes as it can also be beneficial in the fields of business, research and community development.

An evaluation essay contains an objective assessment that is written by an individual who should be fully-knowledgeable of what he or she is writing about. More so, this essay relays the sound judgement about a specific subject matter or topic of discussion. Each evaluation essay are based on evaluative writing that are commonly created in accordance to a set of criteria or value measurements. We have curated ten evaluation essays that you can refer to if you want to write your own evaluation essay.

Self-Evaluation Essay Sample

Size: 31 KB

Student Self-Evaluation Essay

Size: 121 KB

Things to Remember When Writing an Evaluation Essay

An evaluation essay should always be direct to the point and specific as it contains factual information that is essential to be known by the readers. To avoid  common essay mistakes , some of the things that you should always remind yourself when writing an evaluation essay are listed below.

• When writing an evaluation essay, a writer must always be backed up by evidences so that he or she can support the evaluation being made. If you are writing an evaluation essay, you should always be objective with the content that you are presenting. Your opinion matters but you should make sure that it is based on reality. Evaluation essays work best if the readers can identify the sources that you have used to come up with the assessment that they are currently reading. If you will ensure that there is enough evidences to support you, then your evaluation essay can be more credible and relevant.
• Be specific with the kind of evaluation essay that you are creating. An evaluation essay can only be effective if you are aware of the purpose on why you are writing the document. Being able to present details, comments, and information that is directly related to the kind of evaluation essay that you are writing can help you create a highly-usable output. There are different kinds of evaluation essays and you should be aware that each of them have differences depending on the purpose of their creation. Come up with a highly-usable and effective evaluation essay by directly providing the needs of your readers.
• Always be clear when presenting your evaluation. Since the main purpose of an evaluation essay is to relay your viewpoint about a specific subject, you have to make sure that you will be precise and concise when delivering the message that you want your readers to be knowledgeable of. You have to explain how you were able to create the evaluation which includes the specification of the factors that you have considered within the entirety of the evaluation and writing process.

Humanities Project Evaluation Essay

Size: 331 KB

Printable Self-Evaluation Essay Example

Size: 128 KB

Purposes of an Evaluation Essay

There is a wide variety of evaluation  essay examples that are specifically created for particular purposes. Evaluation essays can cover a lot of topics which is why it is used in a range of industries and processes. The different kinds of evaluation essays can be used for the following instances and activities:

• To create a book report or a review of a book’s content and how it has affected the reader
• To identify critical points of a written work may it be a poem, another essay or a research paper
• To create a literature or literary review to fully identify the content of a literary piece
• To give critique about an initial analysis or a full process
• To support the processes of employment regularization or employee promotion
• To assess and analyze the results of a reading activity
• To add value to a recommendation letter
• To analyze a research topic that can fully affect the entire research activity
• To evaluate the work performance of either a student or an employee
• To identify the strengths and weaknesses of an individual through a self-evaluation

With the different ways on how you can use an evaluation essay, it is safe to say that there are a lot of fields of expertise that can benefit from this document. When creating your own evaluation essay, you should always keep in mind that the content of your essay must be relevant to the message that you would like to disseminate or share to your target readers.

Thesis Paper Evaluation Essay Example

Size: 100 KB

Evaluation Essay Sample in PDF

Size: 282 KB

Qualitative Evaluation Essay Example

Size: 396 KB

Steps in Writing an Evaluation Essay

If you want to create an evaluation essay, you should be strategic when it comes to the presentation of information that can be helpful in the writing activity. Your evaluation essay can only be fully-maximized if there is an organized discussion of your evaluation as well as the facts that can support your thesis statement.

Here is an  essay writing basic guide  that you may follow when writing an evaluation essay:

• Be aware of your topic. The first thing that you need to do when writing an evaluation essay is to be knowledgeable about the topic that you will write about. As much as possible, research about the subject of discussion so you can easily identify the characteristics that you can evaluate and the criteria that you will use for evaluation.
• Make sure to have a set of criteria that can help you determine your evaluation. Once you are already aware of your topic, you can already set criteria that will serve as the basis for your evaluation. If you will properly identify the criteria that will best fit your needs for the specific evaluation, then you can make your evaluation essay stronger and more effective.
• Refer to samples and templates of evaluation essays. It will be helpful if you will look at different kinds of evaluation essay samples and templates. These documents can help you be more familiar with what an evaluation essay is and how the details present in this kind of essay should be arranged and presented.
• Create an evaluation essay draft. It will depend on you if you will use a template as your guide when writing an evaluation essay. You can also just browse through samples and start your evaluation essay from scratch. One thing that we highly suggest you should do is to make a draft or an outline of the discussion that you would like to have. This can help you ensure that all the necessary information will be placed in your final evaluation essay.
• Start writing the content of your evaluation essay. Through the help of the draft that you have created, write a thesis in the first paragraph of your essay. This is the part where you can discuss the topic that you will use for evaluation and the statement on whether you think positively or negatively of the subject. The way that you create a thesis statement will be based on the nature of operations or functions where the essay will be used.
• Incorporate evidences in your discussion so you can support your claims and/or opinions. After your thesis statement and discussion of important details, your next paragraphs should contain your opinions as well as the evidence that you have used as references. You can end your evaluation essay by having a firm statement of your conclusion.

Printable Self-Evaluation Essay Sample

Size: 13 KB

Self-Assessment Essay Example

Size: 29 KB

Simple Self-Evaluation Essay Example

Size: 51 KB

Evaluation Essay as an Important Written Document

An evaluation essay should be taken seriously especially in matters where its content can affect other people or even an entire community. Since an evaluation essay is not only a part of  college essay examples  as it can also be used in business and corporate processes, you have to understand the weight of its effectiveness. May it be a self-evaluation essay or a project evaluation essay, always keep in mind that you should put together all the evident facts and your statements in a professional and objective manner.

Whether it is a  last minute essay writing  or a thoughtfully planned evaluation essay composition, being aware of the items that we have discussed in this post can help you further improve the content and structure of an evaluation essay. It will also be easier for you to come up with an evaluation that can be trusted by your readers. Present all the details that you need to discuss in an organized and informative manner so you can come up with an evaluation essay that will truly work.

Text prompt

• Instructive
• Professional

Write an Evaluation Essay on the effectiveness of online learning platforms.

Discuss the quality of a school cafeteria's lunch options in an Evaluation Essay.

How do I make a PDF accessible?

What is a pdf, anyway.

PDF stands for portable document format—it’s a file type. After you create a document in an authoring tool first, such as Google Docs, Word, or InDesign, you can then export your document as a PDF.

You may have heard people say that you need Adobe Acrobat Pro to create accessible PDFs. You do need Acrobat Pro (or a comparable tool) to check the accessibility of PDFs, but it’s important to note that Acrobat Pro is not an authoring tool. Acrobat Pro is used to add accessibility and other features to PDF files.

Do you have to use a PDF?

We’ll give it to you straight: making accessible PDFs is tough. If your information can be shared as a web page instead, please do so. Web content is inherently more accessible, and with content management systems such as Open Berkeley , it’s easy to make your web content accessible.

If you must use a PDF…

If you produce PDF documents, there are some important things to be aware of:

• It’s easier to create an accessible PDF by starting with an accessible source document (if possible).
• Remediating an existing PDF that isn’t accessible is extremely difficult to learn and time-consuming.
• The accessibility of PDFs can vary widely; some PDFs are completely unusable for some users. Conversely, a PDF that was designed to be accessible can work well for most users.
• Some PDFs don’t allow text to reflow, so low vision and mobile users may have a very hard time reading them. This often happens with PDF forms, or with complex documents containing tables, multiple columns, or complex graphics. (Note: Reflow is when text adapts to screen size so it doesn’t get cut off or require horizontal scrolling.)
• Browser previews may not function correctly and users may not understand they have to download the document.
• Large PDFs may be slow to download, too large to email, or use too much data.

What does it mean for a PDF to be accessible?

• Machine readable text : If you scan in a paper document or “print to PDF”, your PDF will be an image-only file. Screen readers can not read images of text.
• Tags : The text in a PDF needs to have tags that describe the function and layout. This is what allows PDFs to work with assistive technologies. These tags are similar to html tags and describe paragraphs, lists, headings, and more.
• Complies with WCAG : The same accessibility features and concepts that are required for websites are required for electronic documents.

Here's an example of PDF tags shown in the Tag Pane in Adobe Acrobat Pro:

Two ways to create an accessible PDF

• Design your document to be accessible in your authoring tool . Then export it as an accessible PDF. If you have access to Acrobat Pro, use the PDF accessibility checker tool.  --OR--
• Remediation : This requires you to use Acrobat Pro to add the proper tags to your document manually. This method allows you to fix a document that lacks accessibility, as is often the case with old legacy documents.

A note about authoring tools

• Word : If you use the correct styles to structure your document and design it to be accessible, you can export a tagged, accessible PDF from Word .
• Google Docs : Begin with an accessible Google Doc . Do NOT export your Google Doc as a PDF– this strips out all the tags! Instead, export as a Word document and then export it as a PDF from Word. Or, use the paid version of Grackle Docs to export accessible PDFs directly from Google Docs. 
• InDesign : There are steps you can take to improve the accessibility of a PDF exported from InDesign , but in most cases, some remediation work will still need to be done. 

Document types

• Important: PDF forms must be remediated to be accessible . Because of the interactivity of form fields, they require that additional tags be added in Acrobat Pro to be accessible. They can not be made accessible in authoring tools at this time. If you can use a webform instead (Qualtrics, Google Forms, etc), that’s always preferable. Another option is to make the static text portion accessible and then use Docusign to add accessible form fields.
• Simple text-based documents can be designed to be accessible in the authoring program (Google Docs or Word) and exported as accessible PDFs. (In Google Docs, use Word or the paid version of Grackle Docs as an intermediary.)
• Complex documents , such as reports with multiple columns, images, large tables, and infographics are difficult to make accessible in authoring programs. Professional remediation is recommended.

Prioritizing PDF remediation

There is no better time than now to audit the documents on your web sites. Once you’ve decided which PDFs you must keep as PDFs, focus on fixing the PDFs that create the biggest barriers:

• PDF forms: These are totally unusable for some users if they aren’t accessible. Because forms are typically a requirement for access to service, they should be a top priority.
• Critical information
• Complex documents

Professional remediation services

We are working to provide Berkeley with PDF remediation services. Please check back in Fall 2023 for updates.

• Crawford Technologies (available soon)
• Grackle (Google Add-ons and remediation services available soon)

More resources

• Adobe: Create and verify PDF accessibility (Acrobat Pro)
• University of Oregon: PDF Forms
• Accessibility Guy: PDF Accessibility video series on YouTube  (2 - 7 minutes per video)

Learn to remediate PDFs on LinkedIn Learning:

• PDF remediation  (5 hours)
• Advanced Accessible PDFs  (6 hours)

Was this page helpful?

Tell us what you think.

Digital Document Requirements

Learn what the accessibility requirements are for PDFs and other digital documents

Steps for Site Owners

Making your digital documents accessible

Training Resources

Training resources to make your digital documents accessible

Advertisement

The 100 Best Books of the 21st Century: A Printable List

By The New York Times Books Staff Aug. 26, 2024

• Share full article

Print this version to keep track of what you’ve read and what you’d like to read. See the full project, including commentary about the books, here.

A PDF version of this document with embedded text is available at the link below:

Download the original document (pdf)

The New York Times Book Review I've I want THE 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY read to it read it 1 My Brilliant Friend, by Elena Ferrante 26 26 Atonement, by lan McEwan 2 The Warmth of Other Suns, by Isabel Wilkerson 27 Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 3 Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel 28 Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell 4 The Known World, by Edward P. Jones 29 The Last Samurai, by Helen DeWitt 5 The Corrections, by Jonathan Franzen 30 Sing, Unburied, Sing, by Jesmyn Ward 6 2666, by Roberto Bolaño 31 White Teeth, by Zadie Smith 7 The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead 32 The Line of Beauty, by Alan Hollinghurst 8 Austerlitz, by W.G. Sebald 33 Salvage the Bones, by Jesmyn Ward 9 Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro 34 Citizen, by Claudia Rankine 10 Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson 35 Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel 11 The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot Díaz 36 Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates 12 The Year of Magical Thinking, by Joan Didion 37 The Years, by Annie Ernaux 13 The Road, by Cormac McCarthy 38 The Savage Detectives, by Roberto Bolaño 14 Outline, by Rachel Cusk 39 A Visit From the Goon Squad, by Jennifer Egan 15 Pachinko, by Min Jin Lee 40 H Is for Hawk, by Helen Macdonald 16 The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, by Michael Chabon 41 Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan 17 The Sellout, by Paul Beatty 42 A Brief History of Seven Killings, by Marlon James 18 Lincoln in the Bardo, by George Saunders 43 Postwar, by Tony Judt 19 Say Nothing, by Patrick Radden Keefe 44 The Fifth Season, by N.K. Jemisin 20 Erasure, by Percival Everrett 45 The Argonauts, by Maggie Nelson 21 Evicted, by Matthew Desmond 46 The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt 22 22 Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo 47 A Mercy, by Toni Morrison 23 Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage, by Alice Munro 48 Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi 24 The Overstory, by Richard Powers 49 The Vegetarian, by Han Kang 25 25 Random Family, by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc 50 Trust, by Hernan Diaz I've I want read to it read it

The New York Times Book Review I've I want THE 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY read to it read it 51 Life After Life, by Kate Atkinson 52 52 Train Dreams, by Denis Johnson 53 Runaway, by Alice Munro 76 77 An American Marriage, by Tayari Jones 78 Septology, by Jon Fosse Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin 54 Tenth of December, by George Saunders 55 The Looming Tower, by Lawrence Wright 56 The Flamethrowers, by Rachel Kushner 57 Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich ཤྲཱ རྒྱ སྐྱ A Manual for Cleaning Women, by Lucia Berlin The Story of the Lost Child, by Elena Ferrante Pulphead, by John Jeremiah Sullivan. Hurricane Season, by Fernanda Melchor 58 Stay True, by Hua Hsu 83 When We Cease to Understand the World, by Benjamín Labatut 59 Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides 84 The Emperor of All Maladies, by Siddhartha Mukherjee 60 Heavy, by Kiese Laymon 85 Pastoralia, by George Saunders 61 Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver 86 Frederick Douglass, by David W. Blight 62 10:04, by Ben Lerner 87 Detransition, Baby, by Torrey Peters 63 Veronica, by Mary Gaitskill 88 The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis 64 The Great Believers, by Rebecca Makkai 89 The Return, by Hisham Matar 65 The Plot Against America, by Philip Roth 90 The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen 66 We the Animals, by Justin Torres 91 The Human Stain, by Philip Roth 67 Far From the Tree, by Andrew Solomon 92 The Days of Abandonment, by Elena Ferrante 68 The Friend, by Sigrid Nunez 93 Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel 69 59 The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander 94 On Beauty, by Zadie Smith 10 70 All Aunt Hagar's Children, by Edward P. Jones 95 Bring Up the Bodies, by Hilary Mantel 71 The Copenhagen Trilogy, by Tove Ditlevsen 96 Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments, by Saidiya Hartman 72 22 Secondhand Time, by Svetlana Alexievich 97 Men We Reaped, by Jesmyn Ward 73 The Passage of Power, by Robert A. Caro 98 Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett 74 Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout 99 How to Be Both, by Ali Smith 75 15 Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid 100 Tree of Smoke, by Denis Johnson I've I want read to it read it

An official website of the United States government

Here's how you know

Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

• The Attorney General
• Organizational Chart
• Budget & Performance
• Privacy Program
• Press Releases
• Photo Galleries
• Guidance Documents
• Publications
• Information for Victims in Large Cases
• Justice Manual
• Business and Contracts
• Why Justice ?
• DOJ Vacancies
• Legal Careers at DOJ
• Our Offices

Archived Press Releases

Archived News

Para Notícias en Español

Justice Department Sues RealPage for Algorithmic Pricing Scheme that Harms Millions of American Renters

The Justice Department, together with the Attorneys General of North Carolina, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Oregon, Tennessee, and Washington, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today against RealPage Inc. for its unlawful scheme to decrease competition among landlords in apartment pricing and to monopolize the market for commercial revenue management software that landlords use to price apartments. RealPage’s alleged conduct deprives renters of the benefits of competition on apartment leasing terms and harms millions of Americans. The lawsuit was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina and alleges that RealPage violated Sections 1 and 2 of the Sherman Act.

The complaint  alleges that RealPage contracts with competing landlords who agree to share with RealPage nonpublic, competitively sensitive information about their apartment rental rates and other lease terms to train and run RealPage’s algorithmic pricing software. This software then generates recommendations, including on apartment rental pricing and other terms, for participating landlords based on their and their rivals’ competitively sensitive information. The complaint further alleges that in a free market, these landlords would otherwise be competing independently to attract renters based on pricing, discounts, concessions, lease terms, and other dimensions of apartment leasing. RealPage also uses this scheme and its substantial data trove to maintain a monopoly in the market for commercial revenue management software. The complaint seeks to end RealPage’s illegal conduct and restore competition for the benefit of renters in states across the country.

“Americans should not have to pay more in rent because a company has found a new way to scheme with landlords to break the law,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “We allege that RealPage’s pricing algorithm enables landlords to share confidential, competitively sensitive information and align their rents. Using software as the sharing mechanism does not immunize this scheme from Sherman Act liability, and the Justice Department will continue to aggressively enforce the antitrust laws and protect the American people from those who violate them.”

“Today’s complaint against RealPage illustrates our corporate enforcement strategy in action. We identify the most serious wrongdoers, whether individuals or companies, and focus our full energy on holding them accountable,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “By feeding sensitive data into a sophisticated algorithm powered by artificial intelligence, RealPage has found a modern way to violate a century-old law through systematic coordination of rental housing prices — undermining competition and fairness for consumers in the process. Training a machine to break the law is still breaking the law. Today’s action makes clear that we will use all our legal tools to ensure accountability for technology-fueled anticompetitive conduct.” 

“RealPage’s egregious, anticompetitive conduct allows landlords to undermine fair pricing and limit housing options while stifling necessary competition,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer. “The Department remains committed to rooting out illegal schemes and practices aimed at empowering corporate interests at the expense of consumers.” 

“As Americans struggle to afford housing, RealPage is making it easier for landlords to coordinate to increase rents,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Today, we filed an antitrust suit against RealPage to make housing more affordable for millions of people across the country. Competition – not RealPage – should determine what Americans pay to rent their homes.”

The complaint cites internal documents and sworn testimony from RealPage and commercial landlords that make plain RealPage’s and landlords’ objective to maximize rental pricing and profitability at the expense of renters. For example:

• RealPage acknowledged that its software is aimed at maximizing prices for landlords, referring to its products as “driving every possible opportunity to increase price,” “avoid[ing] the race to the bottom in down markets,” and “a rising tide raises all ships.”
• A RealPage executive observed that its products help landlords avoid competing on the merits, noting that “there is greater good in everybody succeeding versus essentially trying to compete against one another in a way that actually keeps the entire industry down.”
• A RealPage executive explained to a landlord that using competitor data can help identify situations where the landlord “may have a $50 increase instead of a $10 increase for the day.”
• Another landlord commented about RealPage’s product, “I always liked this product because your algorithm uses proprietary data from other subscribers to suggest rents and term. That’s classic price fixing…”

The complaint alleges that RealPage’s agreements and conduct harm the competitive process in local rental markets for multi-family dwellings across the United States. Armed with competing landlords’ data, RealPage also encourages loyalty to the algorithm’s recommendations through, among other measures, “auto accept” functionality and pricing advisors who monitor landlords’ compliance. As a result, RealPage’s software tends to maximize price increases, minimize price decreases, and maximize landlords’ pricing power. RealPage also trained landlords to limit concessions (e.g., free month(s) of rent) and other discounts to renters. The complaint also cites internal documents from RealPage and landlords touting the fact that landlords have responded by reducing renter concessions.

The complaint separately alleges that RealPage has unlawfully maintained its monopoly over commercial revenue management software for multi-family dwellings in the United States, in which RealPage commands approximately 80% market share. Landlords agree to share their competitively sensitive data with RealPage in return for pricing recommendations and decisions that are the result of combining and analyzing competitors’ sensitive data. This creates a self-reinforcing feedback loop that strengthens RealPage’s grip on the market and makes it harder for honest businesses to compete on the merits.

RealPage Inc., is a property management software company headquartered in Richardson, Texas.

Related Content

The Justice Department, Department of Labor (DOL), Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) have signed an interagency memorandum of understanding (MOU) to further communication and coordination...

Thank you, Deputy Attorney General Monaco.

I would like to reiterate the Attorney General’s and the Deputy Attorney General’s thanks to the leadership and staff of the Antitrust Division. They...

Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.

Since the beginning of this administration, our approach to corporate misconduct across the Justice Department has been simple, straightforward, and relentless.

Cookies on GOV.UK

We use some essential cookies to make this website work.

We’d like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services.

You have accepted additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

You have rejected additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

• HM Revenue & Customs

HMRC Trusts and Estates Newsletter: August 2024

Updated 28 August 2024

© Crown copyright 2024

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected] .

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hm-revenue-and-customs-trusts-and-estates-newsletters/hmrc-trusts-and-estates-newsletter-august-2024

Welcome to the August 2024 edition of the HMRC Trusts and Estates Newsletter.

We do not have a mailing list for the newsletter.

Update to Inheritance Tax IHT100 Forms

HMRC have been working to update and streamline the IHT100 suite of forms, consistent with the recommendation made by the former Office of Tax Simplification. We would like to thank representative bodies for their contribution in reviewing the forms.

Previously, customers were required to complete form IHT100, an additional event form, and supplementary schedules D31 to D40 to notify HMRC about each chargeable event when Inheritance Tax is payable on a trust or gift.

Customers are now only required to complete and submit a specific IHT100 form depending on the chargeable event, along with the relevant supplementary schedules D31 to D39.

Where the chargeable event involves notifying HMRC about the ending of a qualifying interest in possession in settled property and there were assets outside the United Kingdom, revised form IHT100b as well as schedule D39 would need to be completed.

The new forms to be used are: 

• IHT100a Gifts and other transfers of value 
• IHT100b Termination of a qualifying interest in possession
• IHT100b(death) Assets held in trust 
• IHT100c Relevant property trusts proportional (exit) charge
• IHT100d Relevant property trusts principal (10 year) charge 
• IHT100e Charges on specialist trusts 
• IHT100f Heritage exempt property 
• IHT100h Assets ceasing to be held in an age 18 to 25 trust 
• IHT418 Assets held in trust 
• D31 Domicile outside the United Kingdom 
• D32 Stocks and shares
• D33 Debts due to settlement or trust 
• D34 Life insurance and annuities 
• D35 Household and personal goods 
• D36 Land, building and interests in land 
• D37 Agricultural Relief 
• D38 Business relief, business or partnership interests 
• D39 Foreign assets 

Links to all these forms are on the Inheritance Tax forms page on GOV.UK.

The new form IHT100b(death) allows the trustees to notify HMRC about a person’s interest in a qualifying interest in possession trust that has come to an end on their death.

The IHT418 remains a dual-purpose form to be used by the executors, or the executors who are also trustees, to notify HMRC about the coming to an end on death of a person’s interest in a qualifying interest in possession trust. 

HMRC will continue to accept the previous versions of the IH1T00 forms and schedules until 31 December 2024.

Guidance pages on Inheritance Tax and Trusts have been updated on GOV.UK to reflect these changes.

Changes to the way we share information needed for probate and confirmation applications

HMRC and the Court Services continue to work together to improve the customer experience for probate, confirmation and Inheritance Tax customers. 

We confirmed a change to our processes in the March 2024 Trusts and Estates Newsletter which meant customers applying for probate in England and Wales no longer needed to complete the IHT421 probate summary. Instead, we explained that we would send a unique code and details of estate values by post once the form IHT400 was processed, allowing customers to make their application for probate.

Where an estate is not an excepted estate, applications for probate are no longer possible without the unique code and confirmation of the estate values.

This change meant that customers have one less form to complete and they can also begin their probate application at the right time, avoiding it being paused and causing unnecessary delays.

We’re committed to continuously improve our processes, so in response to customer feedback, we’re updating the form IHT400. Customers will be asked to provide their email address and sign a disclaimer when completing the form if they wish to receive their unique code by email instead of through the post. This will speed up the process and allow the probate or confirmation to be submitted earlier.

The customer’s email address will be used for the specific purpose of notifying the unique code, no other correspondence can be entered into by email and no other documentation submitted. All forms and documentation should still be submitted to HMRC by post.

If HMRC are unable to issue a unique code, the customer will receive a letter in the post to state what action is required.

This change applies to probate applications in England and Wales.

For Scottish estates we will email the letter required for confirmation (SL189).

Northern Ireland estates are not affected by these changes.

These improvements form part of our commitment to make things easier for our customers, which is one of our  HMRC Charter standards.

Administrative change to ease the payment of Inheritance Tax before probate or confirmation

The March 2024 Trusts and Estates Newsletter set out that from 1 April 2024, changes had been made where personal representatives of estates are applying to obtain a ‘grant on credit’ from HMRC.

Revised guidance explaining this change has been published on GOV.UK.

Tell HMRC about who is dealing with the estate when someone dies

As a result of improvement suggestions from our agent liaison groups, HMRC has now published form P1000 on GOV.UK.

This form allows personal representatives of a deceased person’s estate to pro-actively engage with HMRC to tell us their details and details of any agents. HMRC’s Bereavement team will contact the persons noted on the P1000 form in dealing with the tax affairs of an individual up to the date of death, and for Income Tax and capital gains of ‘informal’ administration periods.

This process change is intended to speed-up dealing with an estate. 

The form P1000 does not replace other means of notifying HMRC, in particular for Inheritance Tax or any ‘agent handshakes’ required by online services. 

If the personal representative cannot use the form P1000, they should usually receive a letter within 40 days if they have used the Tell Us Once service to report that someone has died to a number of government departments. Otherwise, they should call the Bereavement and deceased estate helpline and clearly say they want the Bereavement Helpline to get through to the right queue quickly.

Agents should also use the Bereavement and deceased estate helpline when dealing with deceased estates rather than the Agent Dedicated Line, to ensure they speak to the right adviser immediately.

Tax returns for low income trusts that cease in the 2024 to 2025 tax year

The March 2024 Trusts and Estates Newsletter described the introduction of a tax-free (de minimis) amount for income of trusts and estates.

The changes were included in Finance (No.2) Act 2023 and came into effect for tax year 2024 to 2025 onwards.

Broadly, from 6 April 2024, trusts and estates with income of all types up to £500 will not pay Income Tax on that income as it arises. Where income exceeds that amount, tax will be payable on the full amount.

For accumulation and discretionary trusts with income that exceeds £500, the default basic rate (20%) and dividend ordinary rate (8.75%) will no longer apply to the first £1,000 slice of trust rate income (commonly referred to as the standard rate band).

HMRC accept in-year paper returns on cessation of a trust. For customers who cease in 2024 to 2025, the 2023 to 2024 paper return should be used. Please ignore box 9A.1 (the amount of standard rate band) as this will not apply.

The Trust and Estate tax return for 2024 to 2025 will be updated to reflect the changes.

Updates to the Trust Registration Service ( TRS ) guidance

We have published new guidance in the HMRC Trust Registration Service Manual at TRSM90000 , which provides detailed instructions on how to use the TRS to register a trust and common errors that might be encountered during the registration process.

This guidance replaces the ‘How to register’ help card issued by the Trusts Helpline.

We will make further updates to TRSM90000 to replace all TRS -related help cards later this year.

Changes to the taxation of non-UK domiciled individuals 

From 6 April 2025, the government will remove the outdated concept of domicile status and implement a new residence-based regime which is internationally competitive and focused on attracting the best talent and investment to the UK.

A residence-based system for Inheritance Tax will also be introduced.

A policy paper has been published which sets out the government’s commitment to reform this area of the tax system. 

Further details will be published on GOV.UK in due course.

Queries or comments about any of the announced changes can be emailed to [email protected] . 

This mailbox is being monitored but during the development of this policy we will not be responding to any emails directly. Instead, we will use those comments when considering future updates. This will help ensure that the same information is made available to all interested parties at the same time.

Is this page useful?

• Yes this page is useful
• No this page is not useful

Help us improve GOV.UK

Don’t include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details.

To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. Please fill in this survey (opens in a new tab) .