- JP Morgan Chase is working on a rent management tool for owners of multi-family housing buildings.
- The new tool, called Story, will enable landlords to send invoices, receive payments, track payments, view analytics, determine rent prices, and screen potential tenants.
- Story is currently in beta, but is expected to be released to a broad audience in 2023.
JP Morgan Chase is piloting a platform to facilitate rent payments for tenants living in multifamily housing. The new technology, called Story, is a rent management tool for multi-family property owners.
As its core functionality, Story will enable landlords to automate rent invoices and receive rent payments. As not all tenants pay rent on time or in full, Story serves as a platform to help landlords track which tenants have paid and which still owe. Additionally, the new offering will provide property owners with analytics, help them determine rent prices, and will even offer a tool to screen potential new tenants.
As for renters, Story will remind them of upcoming rent payments, offer them multiple payment options, enable autopay, track their previous rent payments, and show a copy of their lease.
The bank has not yet set a price for the tool, but indicated that it will not charge a transaction fee for ACH, debit, or credit card payments for the first year. After that, Chase clients that hold an unspecified minimum balance will receive free ACH payments.
Story, which is currently available in 15 U.S. states, will be released to a broader set of users next year.
I’m always surprised at the lack of property tech (proptech) solutions in the fintech space. During the last decade, tenants’ rent payments totaled $4.5 trillion, and this number is set to increase massively between 2020 and 2030. Aside from insurtech, proptech is one of the last frontiers of fintech to be digitized. Now that we’re seeing a large incumbent like JP Morgan get into the game, it is only a matter of time before we see competing proptech innovations from other traditional banks.
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