Using Credit Cards to pay rent during COVID-19?

[Heather Frusco]

So far Tenants have options in making their rent payments... there are multiple options from a stimulus bill offering $1,200 per adult, to $600+/week offered for unemployment in addition, to state unemployment, to personal loan availability, to LL’s making it easier where possible. One option that some LL’s are able to offer their Tenants is to pay their rent with a Credit Card.

...and, if you have a credit card, you’ll generally fall into one of two camps...

Camp #1 – Have credit cards to receive ‘points’ or ‘cashback’ by using them to pay for most anything from entertainment, to food, to utilities, to most other things... Why would shelter be any different?

Camp#2 – Have credit cards to be used only as an ‘emergency’ – Don’t know about you but if you’re not able to make your payment for the roof over your head... that does constitute as a personal emergency.

Ironically some Tenants ‘scoff’ at the idea of using a Credit Card to pay for the roof over their head... the claim is usually the same ‘I don’t want to go into debt...’ which is ironic that one would all of the sudden have a ‘financial intuition’ even though those in such a position have failed to prepare financially leading up to now. To add to the irony... is that we personally have worked out deals with tenants to DEFER rent, I’ll say it again defer the rent – not forgive – which means that rent will still be due... a debt. Here’s the big difference however...

When a Tenant uses a Credit Card to pay rent they are on the ‘hook’ for the payment (if you call paying as agreed a ‘hook’)... there is no getting around it… if they place ‘chargeback’ it can easily be held up in court at a later date to force them to comply and pay their debt to the LL... if they fail to make their payment to their CC company... they are sent to collections... in other words... THEY ARE HELD RESPONSIBLE ... which is where most have issue with using a credit card... instead hoping to defer rent to a later date and then walk-way before their balance is brought current or rather hope to just have their balance ‘disappear’... so really there is only one question on the table left to ask...

Why aren’t you able to use your Credit Card to pay your rent again?