Electronic Funds Corp. of Carson City, Nev., is providing technology for electronic transfer of funds to enable apartment owners to offer their residents an automatic payment program. Instead of writing, mailing and wondering if their monthly rent check will arrive on time, residents can fill out a form once, and the rent payment will automatically be transferred each month from their bank account to the owner's account.
Transactions can only be for a pre-authorized amount, on specified dates.
The entire process is governed by the Funds Transfer Act of 1978. Because of software automation and security encryption, the process could be safer than a written check. For property owners, in two or three minutes, hundreds of rent payments can be processed, with the funds automatically deposited into the owner's account. This will reduce the need for late notices and will dramatically reduce the need for collection efforts. Two other programs aim to revolutionize security deposits.