Gurugram-based Housing.com, a digital real estate platform in India, has announced the launch of the Rent Now Pay Later (RNPL) service in partnership with Bengaluru-based embedded finance start-up, Niro. 

This credit solution offers customers the ability to pay their rent on credit. The company claimed in a statement that the users can pay their rent on the platform of Housing.com with a zero-convenience and interest-free credit period of up to 40 days. Additionally, they can also convert rent payment into easy monthly installments (EMIs)

Housing.com and Niro claimed to accomplish a successful pre-launch phase by extending offers to nearly 1,00,000 users. The first rental payment involves zero conveniences or service fees, and users can choose to upgrade their credit limit up to 3 Lakhs.  

Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO of Housing.com, PropTiger.com and Makaan.com, "India has become a trailblazer in the world of digital payments and we anticipate that services like Rent Now Pay Later (RNPL) will only continue to gain traction. This solution will bring genuine empowerment to millions of customers who desire to rent properties using credit but are often hindered by the lack of traditional instruments."

“The trend of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services has been growing globally, with companies such as Klarna, Afterpay, and Affirm leading the way. These services provide consumers with the ability to make purchases without having to pay upfront, allowing them to pay in installments over time,” he added. 

Commenting on the launch, Aditya Kumar, co-founder and CEO of Niro said “We are excited about our collaboration with Housing.com to enable India’s first ‘Rent Now, Pay Later’ product for Housing’s customers. At Niro, we are constantly striving to create innovative credit solutions for consumer internet platforms. Through our joint efforts, we have been able to truly revolutionise the way people think about rental payments in India. Housing.com and Niro are both well-positioned to tap into the potential of this growing market and make a meaningful mark in the industry.”