According to PYMNTS.com, nearly half of renters have faced rent hikes recently, intensifying affordability pressures. In response, BNPL giant Affirm announced a pilot this month with fintech Esusu, which works with property owners covering 5 million units and processes an estimated $100 billion in annual lease volume. The pilot allows select renters to split their monthly rent into two installments with 0% interest and no late fees during the test. Affirm is not alone; BNPL provider Zip is offering a similar option via PayRent, splitting rent into four payments over six weeks. This shift targets the two-thirds of U.S. consumers living paycheck to paycheck, where a mismatch between fixed bill due dates and variable paychecks often breaks budgets.
The Paycheck Problem Meets a Tech Solution
Here’s the thing: the core idea makes a ton of sense on paper. Rent is usually due on the first. But what if you get paid on the 5th and the 20th? That mismatch has historically been “solved” with overdraft fees, credit card debt, or late payments—all of which punish you. BNPL flips the script by setting the terms upfront. It’s predictable. You know exactly when the money will come out. So conceptually, moving BNPL from discretionary shopping to essential expenses like utilities, groceries, and now rent was almost inevitable. It’s treating your necessary monthly outflow as “working capital,” which is a fancy way of saying it helps your cash flow.
More Than Just Installments: Data and Credit
But the rent BNPL play isn’t just about splitting a payment. It’s deeply tied to data and credit reporting, which might be its most impactful angle. Affirm says it now underwrites every transaction in real time using enhanced signals like linked bank account balances and cash-flow trends. They argue this gives a more current picture than a stale credit score, potentially extending credit to people with thin files. And Esusu already reports on-time rent payments to credit bureaus. That’s huge. For millions of “credit invisible” people, consistently paying their largest bill—rent—could finally help build a credit history, opening doors to better loans and apartments later. It turns a financial behavior that was mostly invisible to the system into a valuable asset.
The Other Side of the Coin: Risks and Responsibility
Now, let’s pump the brakes for a second. Does this actually solve affordability, or just reshuffle the deck chairs on a financial Titanic? It doesn’t make rent cheaper. It just changes the timing. And there’s a real risk of over-extension. If you’re using BNPL for groceries, utilities, and rent, those fixed installment obligations can stack up quickly, creating a fragile house of cards. Also, remember that Affirm isn’t a bank; it works through partner banks that originate the loans. That adds layers to the process. For landlords, the appeal is clear: steadier cash flow, fewer missed payments, and happier tenants. But they have to buy into the platform, like Esusu or Zip’s PayRent integration. Will they?
A Systemic Shift or a Stopgap?
So what are we really looking at? This feels like a significant, emerging category, not just a pilot. It acknowledges a systemic flaw—rigid due dates in a gig-economy world—and offers a tech-driven patch. It provides flexibility and a potential credit-building path, which are genuine benefits. But I think we have to be skeptical about calling it “financial inclusion” if it just lets people manage unaffordable costs more smoothly. It’s a tool, not a solution. The real test will be scale: Can these models prove they help without harming? And will consumers use them as a temporary bridge or a permanent crutch? Only time, and a lot more data, will tell.
