New Bilt 2.0 credit cards: Revamped rewards on rent and mortgage payments

Bilt is known as a credit card for renters, but its latest launch makes homeowners eligible for rewards on mortgage payments, too. With Bilt 2.0, Bilt has launched three new rewards credit cards with varying annual fees, benefits, and rewards rates.

But there are also some major changes to the program, including how you earn rewards on rent and mortgage payments. Here's what you need to know to decide if a Bilt 2.0 credit card is right for you.

What's new with Bilt 2.0

Before this update, earning rewards on rent with the old Bilt Mastercard (no longer available) was relatively straightforward. You could earn 1 point per dollar spent on rent payments with no added transaction fee as long as you made at least five transactions in a statement period with your card.

Now, things are a bit more complicated. Existing cardholders have two options for earning rewards on rent and mortgage payments: Flexible Bilt Cash or housing-only rewards. The option you choose will impact how you earn Bilt Points from your housing payments.

Note: Bilt Cash expires at the end of the month, 12 months after it is earned. If you earn $100 Bilt Cash in October 2026, for example, it will expire at the end of October 2027.

Flexible Bilt Cash

With this rewards option, you can use your Bilt Cash toward your rent or mortgage payment to unlock Bilt Points.

For every $3 Bilt Cash you put toward your monthly rent or mortgage payment, you'll earn 100 Bilt Points. However, you can only unlock up to your monthly housing payment amount with this option.

For example, say your monthly rent payment is $2,000. To get the maximum 2,000 Bilt Points on your payment, you'd need to use $60 Bilt Cash. Because you can only unlock up to 1x points on monthly housing payments, that's the maximum Bilt Cash you can put toward housing payments to unlock points each month.

With Flexible Bilt Cash rewards, you'll earn 4% Bilt Cash on everyday spending with any of the three Bilt Cards.

Using the example above, to earn the $60 in Bilt Cash you'll need to get the max 2,000 Bilt Points on your monthly rent payment, you'll need to spend at least $1,500 on non-rent purchases.

There are some additional options for redeeming Bilt Cash, too. You can use your cash to boost your Bilt status and for exclusive experiences, or at a dollar-for-dollar value for monthly credits that can be used on hotel bookings through the Bilt Travel Portal, Lyft credits, fitness classes through the Bilt app, dining at Bilt partner restaurants, and more.

Housing-only rewards

You can also choose not to deal with Bilt Cash and instead earn up to 1.25x points on your housing payments. The exact number of points you'll earn depends on how much you use your card for everyday spending throughout each billing cycle:

• Earn 0.5x points on housing payments when you spend at least 25% of your monthly housing payment on everyday purchases

• Earn 0.75x points on housing payments when you spend at least 50% of your monthly housing payment on everyday purchases

• Earn 1x points on housing payments when you spend at least 75% of your monthly housing payment on everyday purchases

• Earn 1.25x points on housing payments when you spend the same amount as your monthly housing payment or more on everyday purchases

For example, say you have the same $2,000 monthly rent payment and this billing cycle, you spend $1,000 using your Bilt Card. You'll earn 0.75x points on your monthly rent payment, or 1,500 points.

If you don't reach at least the 25% minimum spending threshold, you'll earn 250 points when you make your rent or mortgage payment through Bilt.

More details about the new Bilt credit cards

Here's a closer look at each of the new cards from Bilt, but you can find a full comparison of these three cards in our Bilt 2.0 review.

Bilt Blue Card: No annual fee

The Bilt Blue Card is the only Bilt 2.0 card with no annual fee (see rates & fees). You'll earn 1x Bilt Points on everyday spending. This card has few ongoing benefits but does offer a $100 Bilt Cash welcome bonus when you apply and get approved and no foreign transaction fees (see rates & fees).

Bilt Obsidian Card: Earn more on dining or groceries

The Bilt Obsidian Card has a $95 annual fee (see rates & fees), but it comes with a few additional benefits and increased rewards. You'll earn 3x points on your choice of either dining or groceries (up to $25,000 spent per year if you choose groceries, then 1x), 2x points on travel, and 1x points on other everyday spending.

This card's welcome bonus is $200 in Bilt Cash when you apply and get approved, and you'll get up to $100 in annual hotel credits (up to $50 semi-annually as statement credits) for eligible Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.

Bilt Palladium Card: Premium rewards

The most premium card in Bilt's new lineup is the Palladium Card, with a $495 annual fee (see rates & fees). Subject to approval, you'll get $300 Bilt Cash as a sign-up bonus and earn 50,000 Bilt Points and Gold Status after you spend $4,000 within the first 90 days of account opening (not including rent and mortgage payments). This card also increases points on everyday spending to 2x Bilt Points.

Added benefits include Priority Pass airport lounge membership, up to $400 in annual hotel credits ($200 semi-annually as statement credits), and $200 Bilt Cash as an annual credit.

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This article was edited by Alicia Hahn.

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