A note from Ankur Jain - Bilt Card 2.0: Simple, Fee-Free Rewards on Housing

The following is an email from Bilt Founder & CEO Ankur Jain to Bilt Members.

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:

  
  

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

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Additional Bilt Card 2.0 – Frequently Asked Questions

*Note: this FAQ will be updated ongoing to ensure clarity.

1. Are there any fees on rent or mortgage payments?

No. You will never pay fees to earn points on rent or mortgage payments through the Bilt Card—no matter which value-added rewards option you select.

2. Do I need to pay a fee to earn rewards on housing?

No. There is never a fee to earn rewards on rent or mortgage payments using the Bilt Card. You’ll earn points on housing differently depending on which value-added option you choose, and your earning rate will depend on how you use your card for everyday spend. 

3. Is there still a cap on how many points I can earn on rent or mortgage?

No. We’ve removed the previous 100,000-point cap on housing payments.

If you choose Fee-Free Rent & Mortgage Rewards as your value-added rewards option, you can earn up to 1.25× points on rent and mortgage payments based on your everyday spend.

4. Do my Bilt Points expire? 

No. Your Bilt Points will never expire.

5. Why can’t I use my credit line for rent and mortgage payments?

Over the past year, we’ve expanded Bilt to support mortgage payments while making sure members never run into credit-line issues from using it on housing. To make that possible, BiltProtect (automatically paying off housing charges on your card within 24 hours) is now required for rent and mortgage payments. This also ensures you’ll never unintentionally accrue interest on housing payments.

6. Can I pay rent or mortgage for more than one home through Bilt?

Yes. You can pay rent or mortgage for multiple homes through Bilt and earn rewards on eligible payments. Your rewards earning will follow the same structure based on the value-added rewards option you select.

7. Can I change my Bilt value-added rewards option after I select one?

Yes. You can change your selected Bilt value-added rewards option at any time. Changes take effect the following month and will be reflected in the Bilt app.

8. Will I still receive credit reporting for rent payments?

Yes. You’ll continue to receive free credit reporting with every on-time rent payment through Bilt.

9. Will transitioning to Card 2.0 trigger a hard credit pull?

No. There is no hard credit pull for any Card 1.0 members transitioning to Card 2.0.

10. I’m a card 1.0 member, why does it say my application was declined?

While we took extensive steps to make the Card 2.0 transition seamless, in a small number of cases (less than 10%) our financing partner was unable to extend a new credit line. If you believe this is an error, please reach out to Bilt support (support@card.bilt.com) and we’ll do everything we can to help get it resolved. There is no hard credit pull for Card 1.0 members, and all other card 1.0 members should be able to seamlessly select a new card.

11. Can I change which Bilt Card I selected (Palladium, Obsidian, or Blue)?

Yes. You can update your card selection anytime before January 30. Simply contact Cardless customer service and our team will take care of it for you.

12. What should I do with my existing Bilt 1.0 card issued by Wells Fargo?

If you've upgraded to Bilt Card 2.0, your old Wells Fargo Bilt card will no longer earn rewards or work for Bilt payments after February 7, 2026. 

You have two options:

Option 1: Keep it open (but unused)

• Pros: Keeping the card open can help your credit score by maintaining your credit history length and keeping your overall credit utilization lower

• Cons: You'll need to store the card somewhere safe, and there's a small risk of losing it or having it stolen. You may also receive occasional statements even with zero activity

Option 2: Close the card

• Pros: Simplifies your wallet and eliminates any concern about the old card

• Cons: Closing a credit card can potentially impact your credit score in two ways: (1) it reduces your total available credit, which could increase your credit utilization ratio, and (2) eventually it will remove that account's history from your credit report (though this takes years)

13. What can I expect from Bilt in the coming months?

As Bilt has grown into a membership for where you live, we’re focused on making everyday life around your home more seamless and more rewarding. You can expect continued expansion of exclusive benefits across your neighborhood, new categories and merchants, and exciting new services—like a concierge experience designed to help you in and around your home.

14. If I choose to pay my full rent or mortgage every month with no transaction fee, will I still get annual/welcome Bilt Cash credits with the cards?

Yes. While everyday spend will not earn Bilt Cash, you will still get your annual or welcome Bilt Cash credits with the card.