RealPage cracks tough-to-automate real estate payments by acquiring ClickPay

Real estate software seller RealPage has boosted its reach into the rental and owner-occupied payment market by acquiring ClickPay, providing a digital gateway into transactions that are still heavily check-based.

The $219 million deal expands RealPage's reach in the addressable real estate market by $1 billion, bringing it to nearly $13 billion. It also supports RealPage's integration of its leasing platform into third-party property management systems, enabling digital payments for rent and maintenance fees.

The purchase additionally increases the Richardson, Texas, company's presence in the New York area through the New York-based ClickPay.

Rental and other nonmortgage real estate payments are still mostly check-based despite the higher cost of check processing over digital payments. In a release citing statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, RealPage estimates there are more than $560 billion in annual rental payments in the U.S., with only a fraction being paid electronically.

By adding ClickPay, RealPage can pitch property managers on rental automation by tying it to other property management functions such as screening, contact center, online leasing, property websites and resident repair request portals.