Bilt Card 2.0 — "Je t'aime... moi non plus."
Bilt 2.0 has been released — a convoluted points system with questionable rewards on rent. Bilt Blue, Bilt Obsidian and Bilt Palladiaum Cards.
Photo: biltrewards.com
When Bilt launched its Bilt Mastercard in 2022, it quickly became popular among savvy customers, especially younger ones. Unlike dozens of other credit cards available on the market, the Bilt Mastercard offered something no one had dared to do at this scale before — allowing cardholders to earn points on rent payments with no transaction fees.
As the card gained more and more traction, the partner bank — Wells Fargo — started losing $10 million every month on the program. The financial losses and Bilt’s dissatisfaction with how the bank marketed its partnership triggered changes to the program and prompted Bilt to move to a new issuing partner.
As anticipated this year, Bilt has parted ways with Wells Fargo and launched its new Bilt 2.0 program. The new program introduced new partners: Bilt 2.0 cards are issued by Column N.A., Member FDIC, with capital provided by Fidem Financial and other capital partners. Cardless provides the digital card platform at the infrastructure level.
The new Bilt 2.0. set of credit cards includes Bilt Blue, Bilt Obsidian and Bilt Palladiaum.
Preorders for the Bilt Card 2.0 program started today, on January 14, 2025.
Current cardholders need to choose a new card by January 30, 2026, to ensure a smooth and seamless upgrade with no impact on their credit score and no hard inquiry on their credit history. If you choose not to upgrade to one of the three new cards by the deadline, you will receive a Wells Fargo Autograph® Card.
Bilt 2.0 promises that cardholders can still earn points on rent and mortgage payments, but the program rules have been largely reworked. The requirement that cardholders make five non-rent transactions per month has been removed. Instead, alongside Bilt Points, a flexible new reward currency — Bilt Cash — has been introduced.
Bilt 2.0 Cards
All three cards - Bilt Blue, Bilt Obsidian and Bilt Palladiaum - allow you to pay rent and mortgage with no transaction fee.
🔸 Bilt Blue Card: an entry-level card to the Bilt 2.0 ecosystem
- Annual fee: $0
- Welcome Offer: $100 Bilt Cash (after your application is approved)
- Intro APR: 10%, 12 months
- Regular APR: 26.74% - 34.74% Variable APR
- Rewards:
- Bilt Points: up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments, 1X on every day spend
- Bilt Cash: earn 4% Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
- Featured Perks:
- No foreign transaction fees
- Cellular Telephone Protection
- Access to Neighborhood Benefits program™
🔸 Bilt Obsidian Card: a mid-tier card within the Bilt 2.0 ecosystem
- Annual fee: $95
- Welcome Offer: $200 Bilt Cash (after your application is approved)
- Intro APR: 10%, 12 months
- Regular APR: 26.74% - 34.74% Variable APR
- Rewards:
- Bilt Points: up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments, 3X on dining or grocery (your choice), 2X on travel, 1X on every day spend
- Bilt Cash: earn 4% Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
- Featured Perks:
- $100 of Bilt Travel Hotel credit
- Trip Delay Insurance
- Stack rewards with Neighborhood Benefits™
🔸 Bilt Palladium Card: flagship card in the Bilt 2.0 ecosystem
- Annual fee: $495
- Welcome Offer: 50,000 Bilt points and Gold Elite status after $4,000 in purchases in the first three months (excluding rent or mortgage); $300 Bilt Cash (after your application is approved)
- Intro APR: 10%, 12 months
- Regular APR: 26.74% - 34.74% Variable APR
- Rewards:
- Bilt Points: up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments, 2X on every day spend
- Bilt Cash: earn 4% Bilt Cash on everyday purchases
- Featured Perks:
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit
- $200 of Bilt Cash
- Priority Pass (worth $469/year)
What is Bilt Cash?
In essence, Bilt Cash is a new rewards currency which is needed to unlock access to housing rewards. Each $30 earned in Bilt Cash unlocks 1,000 Bilt Points when applied to rent or mortgage payments, including across multiple properties.
Additionally, Bilt Cash provides redemption value and access to exclusive features, experiences, and benefits within the Bilt ecosystem.
Bottom Line
The launch of three all-new Bilt cards brings several important updates to the point system, including a new reward currency - Bilt Cash. Customers will no longer earn 1X points on rent solely by completing five small transactions.
To match the original Bilt Mastercard’s rent reward structure, customers would now need to spend the equivalent of 75% of their rent amount on everyday purchases such as groceries, dining, gas and others.
All-in-all, Bilt 2.0 is definitely a more complex replacement of the original Bilt Mastecard program. It nudges customers toward adopting the card as their primary daily spender if they want to maximize cashback on rent and mortgage payments.
But who wants an easy life ? It’s boring !
– Jane Birkin