Offering Renters All-Inclusive Bills And Rent Payments Is Now A Lot Simpler

Jack Ray founded Billing Better, now Homebox, in 2016 to tackle a specific problem: budget management for renters. Rather than pay each individual utility bill, council tax bill and internet fee, Ray had a vision to establish a payment service that bundles all bills together in one lump payment.

For both renters and landlords, this simplification is invaluable, Ray said. All renters have a greater need to budget effectively in the face of the cost-of-living crisis. For landlords, it provides not only certainty that bills will be paid, but a valuable offering to attract residents.

As the company completes its rebrand to Homebox, a utilities comparison company it acquired in 2022, Bisnow spoke to Ray about how offering all-inclusive bills and rent to residents can create a differentiator for landlords and build-to-rent operators.

Bisnow: What inspired you to found Billing Better?

Ray: I know firsthand that renters are looking for ways to simplify their money management. Usually, people get paid on the same day every month. If all their bills are paid on the same day, this makes budgeting simpler. It helps from a financial cleanliness perspective and can even boost their credit score. 

In general, financial anxiety is on the rise. According to Rightmove, searches for the term “all bills included” are up 36% year-on-year and the site attributed this to people’s desire for certainty over outgoings. 

From a landlord’s perspective, this means that residents are much more likely to be able to stay on top of their bills. For a BTR operator offering a certain quality of home, it’s not attractive for debt collectors to turn up at someone’s door, or for a utility to be cut off if bills are unpaid.

Bisnow: Why have BTR operators not generally offered all-inclusive bills and rents before?

Ray: Renters want bills included, but BTR operators don’t want to have the liability of the bills. This is where we come in. We sit in the middle as a payment infrastructure that allows the BTR operators to offer bills included in the experience of renting their home.

The resident will always be responsible for their bills, not Homebox. We act as a payment facilitator that distributes the payment to the relevant companies. 

We also do the setup and close down of bills when a renter arrives and leaves. This simplifies life for the renter, as they don’t have to sort the administration. For a BTR operator, this is another benefit they can offer to a potential renter. 

Bisnow: As well as financial certainty, how does Homebox help people to reduce their bills?

Ray: The huge increase in energy costs means that people are much more aware of their consumption and the need to be on top of it. Our mobile app gives people visibility into their use by directly integrating with energy suppliers. 

Energy use is presented to customers in a way that you wouldn’t normally see on an energy bill. It is simple, clear and explains how they have used each kilowatt-hour. 

The utilities industries are generally archaic in terms of their processes. We are offering a digital way for people to manage their utilities. 

Bisnow: How does inclusive billing help a BTR operator to reduce energy consumption?

Ray: Many BTR operators have a community heating system in their building. This means they are liable for paying for heating and then collect money from residents. If we can drive the right usage habits, we can help reduce that usage. 

Some BTR operators are introducing gamification to reduce usage. They provide anonymous leader boards to show who has the least consumption or have blocks going up against other blocks. Our role is to have a direct relationship with the consumer to help them reduce energy use. 

We’re now looking into how we communicate with renters more proactively, such as sending emails and texts giving usage alerts. Or we could link with weather forecasts and alert them to warmer weather, so they know to turn down the heating. There’s potential for us to work with smart thermometers in the future to turn heating down.

Bisnow: Is the number of BTR operators offering all-inclusive billing and rent increasing?

Ray: We work with many individual landlords and a growing number of BTR operators. The type of people BTR wants to attract are those who often seek a turnkey solution, which is where our product fits in nicely. We offer a simple, all-inclusive way for them to pay all their bills and rent. 

As we continue to rebrand the company to be Homebox, we will bring more BTR operators on board. The BTR market is still growing rapidly, so offering all-inclusive bills along with rent will become an important differentiator.

This article was produced in collaboration between Homebox and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.