RentShare, a payment service that lets tenants pay their rent online, has been acquired by i3 Verticals, a payment-tech conglomerate that provides payment solutions for a number of industries.
The acquisition provides the latest indication that the rent payment industry has reached an “inflection point” that could lead to broader adoption of rent payment platforms, said Christopher Toppino, co-founder of RentShare.
While most rent-payment service require landlords or property managers to sign lengthy merchant agreements, RentShare does not. It will even cut and send rent checks to those who aren’t ready to accept online deposits.
In addition to helping roommates split rent between themselves, RentShare also lets roommates divvy up other expenses, such as utilities, food, toilet paper and even pizza.
One effect of rent payment services has been to open the door for more renters to pay their rent using debit and credit cards.
RentShare charges a flat fee of $1.95 to tenants who use a bank account to pay their rent and a 2.9 percent fee to those who use a debit or credit card.
Toppino and RentShare co-founder and CEO Ian Halpern will stay with RentShare to boost adoption of the service. They’ll get some help from a $50 million credit facility recently announced by i3 Verticals.
Halpern added that RentShare will expand “major product, sales and marketing initiatives” to provide a “universally accessible mobile rent payment and collection platform to fit the needs of any landlord and tenant.”
RentShare will also be looking to take advantage of i3 Vertical’s resources to “pursue key acquisitions in the space,” Halpern said.
Toppino sees the acquisition of RentShare as a turning point in the industry, especially for companies that cater to small-business property managers and independent landlords.
Intuit’s SparkRent and WilliamPaid, two heavyweights in online rental collection, both recently closed their doors.
But along with RentShare’s acquisition, RadPad recently closed a $9 million funding round partly due to the success of its rent payment app.
