Pay your Rent with a Credit Card (and get Rewards!)
We were perusing Sara Gebhardt's Apartment Life column in the Washington Post and ran across a subscriber's question about paying their rent with a credit card. This sounds like a great way to earn rewards from your credit card company…free flight to Vegas, here I come!
Housing is usually one's largest monthly expense, be it a rent or mortgage payment. Typically, tenants pay their rent by check each month. Instead, consider paying your landlord by credit card.
Your landlord should be happy with this arrangement; landlords will enjoy having scheduled monthly payments and not having to worry about getting late apartment rent checks.
You should be happy about this arrangement because you will be able to take advantage of all those rewards that many credit cards offer. You can sign up for credit cards that offer rewards on gas, flights, and a host of other things. For the average renter, you'll be able to put between $6,000-12,000 worth of payments towards a new vacation or to help you pay for gas.
If your landlord doesn't offer this service, get a group of fellow tenants together and jointly request that they accept credit card payments. They can use services such as Property Solutions in order to offer this service.
Of course, you will need to be careful about putting such a large expenditure on your credit card bill. Interest and fees resulting from late payments on credit cards are usually higher than your landlord would charge. Also, not paying your credit card bills can hurt your credit much more quickly than late rent payments to your landlord.
As long as you pay your credit card bill on time, however, it seems like this could be a great idea for both you and your landlord. Imagine receiving a free flight each year just for paying your rent!
Have you had problems convincing your landlord or property manager not accept credit card payments?
Let us know how you have taken advantage of reaping rewards by putting your rent on a credit card.
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April 24th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
That's a great idea until your landlord charges you $10 every month to process your credit card for rent payment. I would think running a card would be easier versus having to endorse and deposit multiple checks at the bank.
April 25th, 2008 at 4:39 am
check out: http://www.rentalrewards.com.au