Francis Apartments or Francis Court asking the credit card copy

When I went to Francis Apartments/Francis Court, the clerk asked me to show my passport and my credit card that I paid for the rent. Since I did not bring the credit card with me for this trip, I had problem check-in. The clerk contacted the JCC for the issue. Well, if my card is not confirmed, they cannot charge me. So, that was the logic I wrote to TripAdvisor and some organizations. But what is the matter of copying some credit card information? Do they engage in the phishing?