The Prepaid Press - Western Union and Neighborhood Pay Services Partner

05/24/2013

Western Union and Neighborhood Pay Services Partner

To Provide Prepaid Card to Multifamily Property Companies

BOSTON, MA and ENGLEWOOD, CO (April 26, 2012) Neighborhood Pay Services, LLC (NPS), providers of Rent Assurance for the Multifamily Housing industry, has partnered with The Western Union Company, provider of global payment services, to offer Western Union Prepaid MasterCard products to renters across the United States.

Starting in the second quarter of 2012, NPS will offer the Western Union MoneyWise Prepaid MasterCard through the NPS Rent Assurance payment platform, a management solution that enables property clients to expand credit acceptance terms to working Americans who apply for apartment rentals.

In addition to providing renters with improved access to professionally managed apartment housing, NPS says this agreement aligns with its mission to provide consumers with the opportunity for improved financial independence. The NPS Rent Assurance program is available exclusively through apartment leasing offices and rent payments are reported for each enrolled resident to a national credit bureau.

"We are very excited to integrate the Western Union Prepaid MasterCard into our core product offering, NPS Rent Assurance," Richard Levitan, president of Neighborhood Pay Services, said. "Our business focuses on helping property companies improve net operating income through strategic use of conditional acceptance terms for consumers with less than perfect credit, and helping those consumers gain access to housing by committing to a program that makes it easier for them to pay their rent reliably in a way that helps rebuild or establish credit."
Levitan, added, "Through our agreement with Western Union, NPS will provide residents with access to an additional valuable financial tool and at the same time improve our operating efficiency. We're very excited about offering another tool to deliver on our commitment to help our customers improve their financial well-being."

Victoria Lopez-Negrete, senior vice president and general manager, North America, Western Union, said, "The Western Union prepaid card gives consumers options and convenience to manage their everyday finances."

Neighborhood Pay Services says it offers the only program in the multifamily housing industry that enables property clients to accept prospective residents based on their willingness to put safeguards in place for reliable rent payment as a condition of lease signing.

"Rent Assurance links to payroll, which makes rent the top monthly payment priority for enrolled residents," Levitan said. "Unlike an ACH or bank auto-pay services, our property clients know with Rent Assurance(TM) the balance that each resident has in their NPS account with each direct deposit and that rent will be paid on time. This assurance contributes to improved occupancy and reduced collection costs, and ultimately improved operating margins."

Source: NPS; Western Union