Bitcoin Now Accepted As Rent By Brooklyn Realtor

CROWN HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — A Crown Heights realty company will let you pay for your next apartment in Bitcoin. Brookliv, based at 945 Carroll St., has been accepting the cryptocurrency as payments on Brooklyn rentals for about a month, said CEO Ari Weber.

“It’s all about giving the client the most options and the best options,” Weber said. “The word is flying out like crazy.”

Bitcoin — the first of many international digital currencies — has been making headlines on a daily basis for years, with finance experts predicting it either will double your money or send you to the poor house. The story was first reported by Inverse.

Which is exactly why Weber decided Bitcoin would be great for his new realty company, which only opened its doors about two years ago — he needed the publicity.

“It’s hype,” said Weber.

Many clients — even those who didn’t end up paying their rent with Bitcoin — told Weber they chose Brookliv because of the message the company writes in its listings: “We now accept Bitcoins as a form of payment.”

“People are like, ‘I gotta tell you, it’s so cool,’” Weber said. “You’re the guy who takes Bitcoin.’”

Three or four clients — whom Weber described as “the tech kind of people: more hip, younger, pretty successful” — are paying with the currency, he said.

“They're well-to-do, they've got some money,” said Weber, explaining that his Bitcoin clients are people with capital to invest. “Bitcoin is not their bread-and-butter.”

Bitcoin leases work the same way normal leases do — the renter and the landlord agree on a set price at the set currency, Weber said.

So if the value of Bitcoin rises, Weber profits, and if it goes down he takes the loss as a marketing expense, he said.

“We can take a little bit of a hit if it does dip," Weber told Inverse, who first reported the story. "But it’s worth it.”

Brookliv mostly offers rentals — leasing apartments in and around Crown Heights, Flatbush, Bed-Stuy and Greenpoint — and will not be accepting Bitcoin mortgages … yet.

“If [Bitcoin] stays steady like this for a long time period, like a year,” said Weber, "We'll see.

“It’s all about the service, that’s my game. I do think this is going to be the future."

Photo courtesy of angelx77/Pixabay