People use their credit cards to pay for many things, but you might be surprised to learn that you can pay your monthly rent with your credit card.
Although paying the rent with a credit card isn’t always the wisest financial move, it can make sense in some situations, and sometimes it’s convenient and necessary.
In this article, I’ll share different ways to pay rent with your credit card. I’ll explain when it might be worthwhile and when it’s not.
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8 Ways to Pay Rent With a Credit Card
Most landlords and mortgage companies won’t accept credit card payments for rent or mortgage payments.
However, there are workarounds that will allow you to do so. The companies listed here act as third-party payment processors that will deposit your rent payments from your credit card into your mortgage company’s or landlord’s bank account.
1. Bilt Rewards
Bilt Rewards is a rewards/loyalty program that allows you to pay your rent through Bilt. If you live in a Bilt Alliance property (over 2 million in the U.S.), you can pay your rent through the app.
If you don’t live in a Bilt Rewards Alliance property, you can still pay your rent or mortgage through Bilt. Just send the money to Bilt Rewards, and they’ll send your landlord a check.
As a non-Bilt Alliance renter, you won’t earn rewards when you pay your rent through Bilt. However, if you open a Bilt Rewards Mastercard, you can start earning rewards on your rent payments even if you don’t live in a Bilt Alliance property.
Some of the features of the Bilt Mastercard include:
- $0 annual fee
- 1x points on rent payments
- 2x points on travel
- 3x points on dining
- 1x points on all other purchases
Also, if you’re living in a Bilt Alliance property, your rent payments are reported to the three major credit bureaus, which can help you build or improve your credit score.
You can use your Bilt Rewards in various ways, including paying for airfare when you travel, paying your rent, paying for fitness classes, or buying curated art pieces.
Find out how you can earn rewards with the Bilt Mastercard.
2. PlacePay
PlacePay is a service that allows you to pay rent via your credit card, debit card, or via bank account withdrawal.
One nice feature of PlacePay is that you can set up your rent payments on autopay. And you can set them up with roommates, too, so that each roommate pays their portion of the rent in the way they want to pay it.
PlacePay has two fee options:
- You’ll pay a flat $1.95 fee if you have your rent monies deducted from your bank account
- You’ll pay a fee of 2.99% of your rent owed if you pay with a credit card or debit card.
Another nice benefit of PlacePay is that it will send you reminder notices to help you avoid late fees. PlacePay accepts Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express.
Note that your landlord has to have a PlacePay account to receive payments from you via PlacePay.
3. Plastiq
Plastiq is a third-party payment processor that will pay your rent or mortgage via a check or Direct Deposit when you use a credit card to send your payment.
You will pay a 2.85% fee to Plastiq when you use this service to pay your rent or mortgage payment.
However, if you’re earning points with a cash-back credit card, you can earn back some of that fee in the form of points earned/cash back.
And although you might not earn all your fees back, every little bit helps. And the monthly spending might help you reach the minimum spending for your card’s opening bonus.
For example, if you need to spend $5,000 on credit card purchases during the first three months of opening the account, you may be able to achieve much of that goal by making rent or mortgage payments with the card and Plastiq.
Of course, you’ll need to do the math to figure out if the 2.85% Plastiq fee is worth what you’re getting in return.
4. Venmo/PayPal
You can use Venmo or PayPal to pay your rent with your credit card for a fee. As third-party processors, Venmo and PayPal charge roughly 3% when you make a payment using a credit card.
Also, your landlord must accept Venmo or PayPal as a form of payment for you to use this rent payment method.
5. ClickPay
ClickPay is a company that was created to connect landlords and property managers with tenants to make paying rent payments easier and more convenient.
Your landlord has to be registered with ClickPay for you to pay your rent through the company. In addition, you need to register for a free account with ClickPay.
ClickPay can take your rent payments directly from your bank account. They also accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express.
Note that the fee structure with ClickPay is a bit murky. While you will find a 2.95% fee on most credit cards and a $2.95 fee for bank withdrawals, the charge for a rent payment made with a Visa card may be higher or lower than 2.95%, depending on your rent amount.
See the ClickPay website for details, but you’ll have to have an account to find your specific fee.
6. Rentler
Rentler is an online property management tool that helps both renters and landlords have a better renting experience.
The site provides various tools, including rental listings, assisting you with rental applications, protecting your privacy during background checks, and helping you pay rent.
As with most of the services listed here, both you and your landlord need to be registered on the site for you to use Rentler to make rent payments. You will pay a 2.9% fee when using Rentler to pay rent with a credit card or a debit card. However, paying via bank withdrawal is free.
Rentler is free to join. However, you will see fees for some services, such as payment processing and rental application submission.
7. RentMoola
RentMoola lets you pay rent with your Visa, Mastercard, Discover, or American Express card. You can also pay your rent via direct withdrawal from your bank account.
One cool thing about RentMoola is the company’s MoolaPerks rewards program. The MoolaPerks program gives you access to a long list of rewards that you earn by paying your rent.
You can unlock savings on deals from a wide array of retailers, and you’ll earn extra points when you use your favorite rewards card to pay your rent.
RentMoola says its fees depend on your payment method and the plan set up with your property manager. That means that your property manager will also need to have an account with RentMoola.
You can expect higher fees for credit card usage than you’ll pay for bank account withdrawal in most instances.
8. Cash Advance
Another way to pay rent with a credit card, though not a great one, is to get a cash advance from your credit card.
The problem with credit card cash advances is two-fold. Most come with hefty withdrawal fees, and daily interest is charged as soon as the cash is withdrawn. The grace period extended to credit card purchases doesn’t apply to cash advances.
Furthermore, the interest charged on cash advances is usually higher than purchase interest.
As a result, paying your rent using a cash advance from your credit card is probably best used only in emergency situations.
When Should I Pay My Rent With a Credit Card?
So, is it ever worthwhile to pay rent with your credit card? The short answer to that question is, no, not really.
Because of the fees and credit card interest, I don’t recommend using your credit card to cover rent in most situations, with the following exceptions:
- You know that you won’t have to pay interest
- You’re minimizing fees (your credit card is cheaper than the alternative)
- You are earning credit card rewards (and not paying credit card interest)
Many people who use the above services to pay rent with a credit card are doing so to reach spending minimums to earn a credit card bonus.
If you choose the right card, earning a credit card bonus may be worth the effort.
Just be sure the card you’re using gets paid off within 30 days and that there aren’t additional fees besides the average 3% or so service fee.
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