My dear readers, some links on this site pay us referral fees for sending business and sales. We value your time and money and will not waste it. For our complete advertising policy, click here. The content on this page is not provided by any companies mentioned, and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by these entities. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone.
Link: Apply or upgrade your existing card to the Bilt Blue Card (no annual fee), Bilt Obsidian Card ($95 annual fee), or Bilt Palladium Card ($495 annual fee).
Bilt Card 2.0 was meant to be a bold reboot of the company’s popular rent-rewards credit card. Instead, after hearing real and reasonable confusion from members, Bilt is already pivoting on one of the most important parts of the program: how you earn rewards on housing payments.
Bilt Rewards founder and CEO Ankur Jain sent a letter to members this week acknowledging confusion about how the new Bilt Card 2.0 rewards on rent and mortgages work and outlining changes designed to make things simpler and more predictable. The full letter, reviewed by Live And Let’s Fly, is included below.
At launch, Bilt Card 2.0 introduced a new currency called Bilt Cash and a layered system for unlocking points on housing payments that left many members scratching their heads (I tried to explain it here). While rent and mortgage payments could still be made without transaction fees, earning points required using Bilt Cash earned from everyday spending. In practice, the system felt more complicated than many expected.
The update announced this week attempts to simplify that structure by giving cardholders a choice. Instead of a single framework, members can now select between two ways to earn fee-free rewards on housing payments. It is a meaningful adjustment, but also an implicit acknowledgment that the original rollout created unnecessary friction.
What’s New: Two Ways To Earn Rewards On Housing
Under the revised approach, Bilt Card 2.0 cardholders can choose between two options for earning points on rent and mortgage payments:
- Option 1: A simple, fee-free way to earn points on housing payments. You pay your full rent or mortgage each month with no transaction fee and earn points automatically based on how much everyday spend you put on the card, starting at 0.5 points per dollar. The more you spend on everyday purchases, the higher your points multiplier, up to 1.25X.
- Option 2: The original Bilt Card 2.0 structure remains available. You earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases and then use that Bilt Cash to unlock points on rent or mortgage payments.
Under both options, Bilt emphasizes that cardholders will never be required to pay a fee simply to earn rewards on housing. Members can choose the option that works best for them and may switch later if their spending habits or preferences change.
Another important change is the removal of the previous 100,000-point annual cap on housing rewards. Depending on the option selected, members can now earn unlimited points on eligible rent or mortgage payments.
Why Bilt Had To Make This Change
Bilt Card 2.0 represented a sweeping overhaul: a new issuing bank, a new lineup of cards, expanded support for mortgages, and a rewards structure built around Bilt Cash. On paper, the program offered more flexibility and long-term upside. In practice, the mechanics of unlocking housing rewards were not intuitive for many longtime users.
The initial design leaned heavily on the idea that members would meaningfully engage with the card beyond rent alone. While that may be necessary for the business model to work, the execution left some cardholders feeling as if earning rent points had become far too difficult or opaque.
This update does not undo Bilt Card 2.0, but it does soften its sharpest edges. By offering a more straightforward earning path alongside the original Bilt Cash model, Bilt is attempting to balance sustainability with usability.
We still don’t know what Bilt Cash can be used for if you don’t use it to earn points on rent or mortgage, but I cannot imagine there would be anything close to an actual 4% cashback in other contexts.
Full Letter From Ankur Jain
It’s worth reading the note, in full, from Bilt CEO Ankur Jain:
Over the past few days, I’ve spent a lot of time reading our members’ emails, DMs, and notes. Many were thoughtful and passionate. Some were frustrated. All were fair.
I feel incredibly lucky to lead a company with members who care this deeply.
On one hand, there have been record applications for the cards, and I’m excited for members to get them. However, I’ve also seen real and reasonable confusion about the new value proposition—especially around rent and mortgage points. That’s on me, and we’re fixing it.
Let me be clear and upfront: Bilt cardholders will never be charged a fee to earn rewards on housing payments.
There’s also an important reality behind how we deliver the richest rewards possible. The more members use the card for everyday spend, the more unique value we can sustainably provide across the Bilt ecosystem. It is probably not a surprise to any of you, but if members only purchase four bananas and earn free rent points, it doesn’t allow us to sustain such a rich value proposition for everyone.
With all that in mind, we are introducing a new, simpler option to earn fee-free rewards on rent and mortgage: now up to 1.25X on each payment.
You will now be able to choose one of the two options for how you want to be rewarded on housing payments with the new Bilt Card 2.0. The core benefits of each card are not changing. This is only an update to how you earn rewards on housing payments.
Option 1:
A simple, fee-free way to earn rewards on housing.
-
Pay your full rent or mortgage every month with no transaction fee
-
Earn points on housing automatically in lieu of earning Bilt Cash
-
While everyday spend will not earn Bilt Cash*, you will still get your annual or welcome Bilt Cash credits with the card
-
The more you use your card for everyday spend, the higher your points multiplier on housing, now up to 1.25x:
Points on Housing
Minimum everyday spend as a % of monthly rent / mortgage (Example of $2,000 rent)
0.5x points
Spend at least 25% of monthly rent ($500)
0.75x points
Spend at least 50% of monthly rent ($1,000)
1x points
Spend at least 75% of monthly rent ($1,500)
1.25x points
Spend the same or more as your monthly rent ($2,000)
You’ll see your progress to each tier clearly in the app each month.
Just like today, if you don’t hit the minimum spend requirement, you still earn 250 points per month. Bilt Card 2.0 also removes the 100,000 rent point cap that existed with Card 1.0, so you can now earn unlimited points on housing payments.
Option 2:
If you prefer the original, fee-free structure we launched Card 2.0 with, it’s still available for you:
-
Earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases, in addition to base points. Think of Bilt Cash as “choose your own reward”.
-
Pay your full rent or mortgage every month with no transaction fee
-
You can use as little or as much of your Bilt Cash to increase the total points you earn on housing that month and you do not ever pay anything out of pocket.
-
You can also redeem Bilt Cash dollar-for-dollar for monthly credits across the Bilt ecosystem (with monthly, merchant-specific caps), or for exclusive benefits like higher transfer bonuses and special access to experiences.
The more you use your card for everyday spend, the more Bilt Cash you earn. We’ll continue adding new ways to spend Bilt Cash as the ecosystem grows.
You choose the option that works the best for you when you activate your card. You can change at any time, and your choice will take effect the following month. And, both options come with the same rich everyday point earnings and premium card benefits you saw at Card 2.0 launch.
We move fast at Bilt. That means we won’t always get everything right the first time, but I read all of your feedback and we will adjust quickly when we miss. I know that for some of you, no explanation of change will fully replace what you loved about the card 1.0 model–I understand that. At the same time, I’m genuinely excited about what this model sustainably enables going forward: giving you the richest rewards on rent, mortgages and everything else.
I’ve also included an FAQ below to answer some of the other questions I’ve been hearing.
We’re grateful to keep building this with you. Thank you for being a Bilt Member.
Ankur
It’s a good note and I give Jain and his team credit for making such a quick pivot (even it raises a question as to why such a pivot was needed in the first place).
CONCLUSION
This update does not reverse Bilt Card 2.0, but it meaningfully clarifies how members earn rewards on rent and mortgage payments. By offering both a simplified earning path and the original Bilt Cash model, Bilt is giving users more control and reducing friction. Even if “Bilt Cash” turns out to be a dud, Bilt Points remain quite valuable.
Whether this adjustment is enough to fully restore confidence among longtime supporters remains to be seen. But the speed of the response demonstrates Bilt is listening…that certainly counts for something.
What do you make of this latest change to Bilt 2.0?
Need a Bilt card? Apply or upgrade your existing card to the Bilt Blue Card (no annual fee), Bilt Obsidian Card ($95 annual fee), or Bilt Palladium Card ($495 annual fee).
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Get Daily Updates
Join our mailing list for a daily summary of posts! We never sell your info.
You have Successfully Subscribed!
