Apartment Residents Increasingly Use Credit Cards to Pay Rent

MRI Software says there’s an on-going rise in the use of card payments from residents of market-rate apartment units. 

With the increase in card payments, MRI Software credits the rise to one of two elements — “credit card fee waivers from landlords or residents’ struggles with cash flow,” according to a news release.

Brian Zrimsek, industry principal at MRI Software, says he sees cause for concern on the rise in credit card payments among market-rate unit residents.

“Residents may be amassing credit card debt in order to pay rent,” he said in a statement. “This is especially worrisome given the coming expiration of enhanced employment benefits, along with the rise in COVID-19 cases in major multifamily markets across the country, which could lead to renewed shutdowns and more unemployment.”

Zrimsek also commented that policies from the government “that protect individuals as well as businesses will help determine whether we encounter a perfect storm or a situation where landlords and tenants can keep themselves afloat throughout the pandemic.”

The Ohio-headquartered MRI Software also says they found an increase in lease pricing at market-rate properties and “significant variation in work orders across asset classes,” according to a press release.

With work orders,market-rate properties experienced a “rebound of service requests,” according to the release. It says the point might show that normal maintenance operations are returning.