Think of it this way: You pay for an ice cream cone before you eat it and you eat it before it melts. Likewise, landlords require that you pay for a month’s worth of rent in order for you to occupy a rental home and before rental days melt away, too.

While most renters may not equate their landlords with the Good Humor man, people universally understand that in order to enjoy the treat – ice cream or the ability to stay in the rental home of their choosing – you have pay up first.

Herein lies the rub when the renter eats up without being able to pay up. In this scenario, which happens all too often for even the most well intentioned people who find they simply don’t have cash on-hand when rent is due, late fees collect like a puddle of dribbles on a little kid’s shirt. This leaves no one with a good taste about cleaning up a mess than can easily lead to eviction.

In a pretty basic exchange of fee for service, renters need tools to keep the proverbial ice cream mess off of them. Enter programs like rent from payroll that help people better budget their money so rent is delivered on time, and also provide an option for landlords to help renters get caught up if their rent is past due.