Every now and then, a tenant will ask me if he can pay his rent with a credit card. My answer is No. All of my leases state that the rent must be paid by check or money order. I don’t accept credit cards. Why? My reason is quite simple. I don’t want to pay the bank fees.

Some apartment houses in Berkeley and San Francisco allow tenants to pay their rent with credit cards, but invariably, its the buildings that get top-of-the-market rent. Many of the new apartment houses in downtown Berkeley allow tenants to pay the rent with credit cards; however, those buildings charge $2,500 to $3,000 a month for small 1 bedroom apartments. I get $1,700 to $1,800 a month for my 1 bedroom apartments. If I was getting $3,000 a month for 1 bedroom apartments, I would accept credit cards too!