PayPal is aiming to bring rent and mortgage payments into the digital age.
The company announced a first-of-its-kind partnership Monday between its subsidiary Venmo and Bilt Rewards that allows millions of Americans to pay their rent, mortgages and even neighborhood merchants directly through Venmo starting in early 2026.
The tie-up with Bilt — a fast-growing housing and rewards network used by more than 5 million members across one in four residential buildings nationwide — marks Venmo’s biggest expansion since its creation.
It gives renters and homeowners a way to make housing payments digitally while earning Bilt Points redeemable for travel, home goods and even down payments.
“Our partnership with Bilt marks a pivotal first step in our journey to bring everyday commerce directly into the Venmo experience,” said Diego Scotti, PayPal’s general manager of consumer.
“Millions of people already use Venmo to split rent with roommates and pay their landlords. Now we’re making that experience even more seamless and rewarding.”
Under the program, users can make rent or mortgage payments from within either the Bilt or Venmo app using their Venmo balance, linked bank account or card.
They can also split rent with roommates or shop at more than 45,000 local businesses in the Bilt network, from restaurants to gyms and retailers, all while earning rewards.
“Venmo is one of the most relevant and trusted payment experiences in America, so bringing it into the Bilt ecosystem is a game-changer for our members,” said Ankur Jain, Bilt’s founder and CEO.
“By combining Venmo’s reach, simplicity, and social connectivity with Bilt’s rewarding rent and neighborhood commerce network, we’re giving millions of renters more flexibility with how they pay and more value every single month.”
The rollout, revealed at the Money20/20 conference in Las Vegas, is slated to begin in early 2026 and coincides with Venmo’s new push to integrate everyday commerce — from rent to restaurants — directly into the app.
For PayPal, which owns Venmo, the move expands its footprint in consumers’ largest monthly expense category — housing — while tapping into a powerful loyalty system.
Bilt already reports rent payments to major credit bureaus at no extra cost, helping users build credit while earning points.
Just one day after the housing payments announcement, PayPal unveiled a separate partnership with OpenAI, making PayPal the first digital wallet embedded directly inside ChatGPT.
Under that deal, ChatGPT users will be able to pay for products using PayPal’s “Instant Checkout” system — powered by OpenAI’s Agentic Commerce Protocol — turning the chatbot into an AI shopping hub for millions of verified PayPal merchants.
PayPal CEO Alex Chriss told CNBC the integration will allow users to “click the ‘Buy with PayPal’ button on ChatGPT and have a safe and secure checkout experience,” adding that both buyers and sellers will benefit from the company’s fraud protection, package tracking and dispute resolution services.
The twin announcements sent PayPal shares soaring more than 14% on Tuesday — the stock’s biggest single-day jump in years — as investors bet on its dual strategy: embedding payments in both the real world through Venmo and the digital future through OpenAI.
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