By Shaheen Alkhudhari
Imagine a future where you don’t need to worry about paper checks or any bounced
payments and have faster, secure transactions.
Just a decade ago, few people could predict a world where payments are paperless,
safe, and quick. Converting from traditional methods was a big shift for consumers’
behavior and economies, with more innovation underway across the MENA region.
Certainly, there are lot of advantages of paper checks both from the landlord and from
the tenant’s perspective. But with digital solutions becoming increasingly more secure
and governments showing more support towards online payment mechanisms, they are
becoming increasingly archaic.
User-friendly apps and platforms have simplified payments for not only consumers, but businesses too. Property owners can now easily streamline purchasing, increase sales, reduce administrative costs, and keep track of data with the dashboards that typically come with these solutions.
The UAE is one of several countries introducing laws to shift away from these traditional payment methods. In Dubai, there are now more relaxed regulations for bounced checks. Where in the past individuals often had to face jail sentences if caught in a bounced check payment case, the court has decided to issue fines instead in a step to give more flexibility to those in debt.
While this is a great leap for financial regulations, the lowered penalty poses a lot of risk
to several stakeholders, including real estate owners who are highly dependent on
check payments for their guaranteed security and legitimacy. Introducing online
payments to collect rent, utility bills, and other fees also means adding more secure
solutions to avoid fraud and conduct safe transactions.
In Jordan, the Central Bank of Jordan is looking to add commission on checks and cash
payments, to push consumers to use online payment portals and e-wallets, that have
been proven to play a part in boosting the economy and streamlining payments.
In Saudi Arabia, consumers will be able to shop online using their debit cards starting
April 1, 2018. The decision comes after successful tests of the service with some
partners, as per the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority.
While these shifts may face some resistance in each market, they will ultimately benefit
businessmen and women across all industries.
Solutions like Ajar Online are in a unique position to disrupt the real estate market,
which is currently one of the fastest-growing markets in the region. Ajar Online offers
landlords a one-stop cloud platform to manage properties and tenants in the most
efficient way. The service allows tenants to pay their rent and bills online via SMS and
email in less than 60 seconds.
Our solution will not only increase timely rent collection, but it will also provide landlords
and real estate companies with the security previously provided by check payments
through its live status updates, legal online receipts, and intuitive reporting tools. Today,
anyone can optimize their rental collections, improve cash flow, and easily run
properties with Ajar Online, anytime and anywhere.
For the real-estate segment, Ajar Online will continue to improve its solution to provide
seamless, secure and a smart way for landlords, real-estate companies, and tenants to
handle rent and property management.
Contact us today to learn more about services in your city and country and how Ajar
can help you save time and money online!
Shaheen Alkhudhari is the founder and CEO of Ajar Online, based in Kuwait.
