Last edit by: Dr Jabadski
Bilt Rewards Mastercard WikiPost
(10/7/23 Original author (Dr Jabadski) note: As I posted here on 9/9/23 Considering Ive been salivating about simple no-cost points-etizing (like monetizing) my condo payments for about 25 years, I see Bilt as a game changer. I should have added almost a Holy Grail (a thing that is eagerly pursued or sought after). I successfully applied for a Bilt Mastercard 1 month ago thus Im far from an expert. Both before and after approval I posted multiple questions many times on this thread and several other FTers were highly gracious and informative. Thought a WikiPost might save some others a good deal of time, effort and aggravation, at least in not repeating my questions and searching for the answers. I certainly hope the experts will edit and update this WikiPost as necessary. Im also exercising Writer's Prerogative to officially coin the term pointsetize, like monetize convert into or express in the form of currency, to earn points from payments which otherwise would not earn points.)
Bilt Rewards Mastercard (Bilt MC) was first launched in mid-2021, in good part as a no fee way to charge and pointsetize rent payments. (Perhaps the only no fee way to pointsetize rent payments.) There are multiple reports of earning Bilt points for paying condominium monthly maintenance/common charges, sometimes even when the word condo or condominium is in the transaction description.
Bilt MC is a personal credit card, WF reports credit card information to the various credit bureaus and Bilt MC will count toward Chase 5/24.
This post and this post (both from 9/7/23) describe shutdown reports perhaps related to micro transactions, fluctuating rent payment amounts or multiple rent payments. This 10/11/23 post includes several references to Reddit user quotes about shutdowns and several Reddit Bilt quotes in response.
Linksto Bilt Rewards Terms of Use and Evolve Bank & Trust (Bilt Technologies) Customer Account Agreement. The Terms state Bilt may make available to you a Bilt Rent Account (Account), which is a transaction bank account that can be used by you solely to make rent payments. The Agreement states: For the avoidance of doubt, the Account is a transaction bank account that can be used by you solely to make rent payments. For the avoidance of doubt, this is not an account that you may use to deposit or withdraw funds for any other purposes outside of rent payments.
Bilt MC is a metal card weighing ~16 grams (comparisons: AmEx biz plat 18.5 gm, AmEx Gold 15 gm, Chase Sapphire Reserve 13 gm, traditional plastic card 5 gm).
Bilt Mastercard is issued and managed by Wells Fargo. Bilt Rewards is a separate website and app (which contains some credit card information but not as much as WF website).
Most reports are of instant approvals, Wells Fargo reconsideration phone number and experiences are not well documented. Reported initial Credit Limits vary $4,000 - $30,000 with higher limits more commonly reported. This post (9/1/23) describes one instance of a Something went wrong message upon application and the steps toward approval several days later.
In March/April 2025 Bilt initiated a new and different process for paying rent and HOA fees which requires preauthorization and/or "auto-pre-authorization" within 5 days of payment.Rent payments can be made in multiple different ways. Bilt will provide a (bank) routing number and account number. ACH rent payments can be sent (deposited) by Bilt or withdrawn by a managing company.
Bilt MC is shipped via trackable no-signature-required First Class mail in a small (4.5 x 6.5) white box with unique packaging inside as pictured at the bottom of this post. As of Feb 2024 no reports of expedited shipping.
Reports on this thread starting in late November 2023 indicate this "quasi-SUB" may be offered randomly and/or only to some people, selection criteria unknown. This post may be the only report of being offered the quasi-SUB prior to Bilt Mastercard application, based on existing Bilt Rewards account. Bilt's quasi-SUB" is offered via an email and a text message notification the same day as card receipt informing of 5x/5 days/max 50K (email quoted verbatim in this post). (Quasi* due to very short duration in contrast to many traditional SUBs of 3 month duration.) Please note this quasi-SUB maxs out at $12,500 (not $10,000) and tax payments will count. No reports yet of returns and their effect on quasi-SUB. (* quasi- a combining form meaning resembling, having some, but not all of the features of, used in the formation of compound words: quasi-definition; quasi-monopoly; quasi-official; quasi-scientific.)
Newly earned Bilt points will display as pending until 5 transactions per statement cycle. After 5 transactions, points will post and become available shortly after a transaction, before statement date. The Bilt Rewards website has a transaction counter which disappears upon reaching 5.
Bilt points for linking partner programs (100 points each) and for adding a credit card to Bilt Wallet (100 points each for first 3) post immediately. Original author received 500 point bonus for first rent payment.
Bilt Rewards points are transferable at 1:1 usually within a few minutes to multiple different airline and hotel programs.
Theres discussion of the long term viability of Bilt with some of those posts linked at the bottom of this post after BREAK.
Bilt Status Tiers: Blue - anyone enrolled in Bilt Rewards with under 25,000 points, Silver - 25,000 points earned, Gold - 50,000 points earned, Platinum - 100,000 points earned. Tier status earned at any point in a year remains active through the end of the following year. Earn Interest on Points (Silver, Gold, Platinum Tiers) is minimal, discussed on this post and this post.
Bilt Points Quest Trivia was discontinued as of July 2024.Bilt Points Quest Trivia on the first of each month offers up to 250 points for correctly answering, within 10 seconds, 6 (out of 15-20) questions. Must get first 5 questions (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 points) correct to see the 6th bonus 100 point question. Theres often a Reddit thread with the Q & A. (Point Quest - October 2023 Answers) The lower half of this post has comments from a highly experienced test taker regarding memory, recall and studying for Points Quest Trivia.
Bilt Rent Free may also have been discontinued in 2024 or 2025.Bilt also has various RentFree games, available a few days prior to and/or on the 1st of the month, different people get different games. Could be a Family Feud style question with enough time to Google answers or a Where's Wally? (Bilt Brick) type of game or something else. Successful completion enters to be one of 3 people for whom Bilt pays their monthly rent (up to $2500).
List of Bilts Rent Day promotions going back to October 2022 at the bottom of the page here: DEALSPOINTS.
June 2024: Bottom of this post describes one persons experience paying a significant assessment (and earning points) with Bilt MC, at this time (only 3 weeks later) no report of clawback or shutdown (based on using Bilt to pay rent more than once a month and/or for something other than rent/condo fees).
June 2024: Bottom of this post contains Bilt quotes regarding Bilt BiltProtect.
June 2024: Important post (and link) stating that WF is losing money every month on Bilt.
(10/7/23 Original author (Dr Jabadski) note: As I posted here on 9/9/23 Considering Ive been salivating about simple no-cost points-etizing (like monetizing) my condo payments for about 25 years, I see Bilt as a game changer. I should have added almost a Holy Grail (a thing that is eagerly pursued or sought after). I successfully applied for a Bilt Mastercard 1 month ago thus Im far from an expert. Both before and after approval I posted multiple questions many times on this thread and several other FTers were highly gracious and informative. Thought a WikiPost might save some others a good deal of time, effort and aggravation, at least in not repeating my questions and searching for the answers. I certainly hope the experts will edit and update this WikiPost as necessary. Im also exercising Writer's Prerogative to officially coin the term pointsetize, like monetize convert into or express in the form of currency, to earn points from payments which otherwise would not earn points.)
Bilt Rewards Mastercard (Bilt MC) was first launched in mid-2021, in good part as a no fee way to charge and pointsetize rent payments. (Perhaps the only no fee way to pointsetize rent payments.) There are multiple reports of earning Bilt points for paying condominium monthly maintenance/common charges, sometimes even when the word condo or condominium is in the transaction description.
Bilt MC is a personal credit card, WF reports credit card information to the various credit bureaus and Bilt MC will count toward Chase 5/24.
This post and this post (both from 9/7/23) describe shutdown reports perhaps related to micro transactions, fluctuating rent payment amounts or multiple rent payments. This 10/11/23 post includes several references to Reddit user quotes about shutdowns and several Reddit Bilt quotes in response.
Links
Bilt MC is a metal card weighing ~16 grams (comparisons: AmEx biz plat 18.5 gm, AmEx Gold 15 gm, Chase Sapphire Reserve 13 gm, traditional plastic card 5 gm).
Bilt Mastercard is issued and managed by Wells Fargo. Bilt Rewards is a separate website and app (which contains some credit card information but not as much as WF website).
Most reports are of instant approvals, Wells Fargo reconsideration phone number and experiences are not well documented. Reported initial Credit Limits vary $4,000 - $30,000 with higher limits more commonly reported. This post (9/1/23) describes one instance of a Something went wrong message upon application and the steps toward approval several days later.
In March/April 2025 Bilt initiated a new and different process for paying rent and HOA fees which requires preauthorization and/or "auto-pre-authorization" within 5 days of payment.
Bilt MC is shipped via trackable no-signature-required First Class mail in a small (4.5 x 6.5) white box with unique packaging inside as pictured at the bottom of this post. As of Feb 2024 no reports of expedited shipping.
Reports on this thread starting in late November 2023 indicate this "quasi-SUB" may be offered randomly and/or only to some people, selection criteria unknown. This post may be the only report of being offered the quasi-SUB prior to Bilt Mastercard application, based on existing Bilt Rewards account. Bilt's quasi-SUB" is offered via an email and a text message notification the same day as card receipt informing of 5x/5 days/max 50K (email quoted verbatim in this post). (Quasi* due to very short duration in contrast to many traditional SUBs of 3 month duration.) Please note this quasi-SUB maxs out at $12,500 (not $10,000) and tax payments will count. No reports yet of returns and their effect on quasi-SUB. (* quasi- a combining form meaning resembling, having some, but not all of the features of, used in the formation of compound words: quasi-definition; quasi-monopoly; quasi-official; quasi-scientific.)
Newly earned Bilt points will display as pending until 5 transactions per statement cycle. After 5 transactions, points will post and become available shortly after a transaction, before statement date. The Bilt Rewards website has a transaction counter which disappears upon reaching 5.
Bilt points for linking partner programs (100 points each) and for adding a credit card to Bilt Wallet (100 points each for first 3) post immediately. Original author received 500 point bonus for first rent payment.
Bilt Rewards points are transferable at 1:1 usually within a few minutes to multiple different airline and hotel programs.
Theres discussion of the long term viability of Bilt with some of those posts linked at the bottom of this post after BREAK.
Bilt Status Tiers: Blue - anyone enrolled in Bilt Rewards with under 25,000 points, Silver - 25,000 points earned, Gold - 50,000 points earned, Platinum - 100,000 points earned. Tier status earned at any point in a year remains active through the end of the following year. Earn Interest on Points (Silver, Gold, Platinum Tiers) is minimal, discussed on this post and this post.
Bilt Points Quest Trivia was discontinued as of July 2024.
Bilt Rent Free may also have been discontinued in 2024 or 2025.
List of Bilts Rent Day promotions going back to October 2022 at the bottom of the page here: DEALSPOINTS.
June 2024: Bottom of this post describes one persons experience paying a significant assessment (and earning points) with Bilt MC, at this time (only 3 weeks later) no report of clawback or shutdown (based on using Bilt to pay rent more than once a month and/or for something other than rent/condo fees).
June 2024: Bottom of this post contains Bilt quotes regarding Bilt BiltProtect.
June 2024: Important post (and link) stating that WF is losing money every month on Bilt.
Bilt Mastercard
#317




Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NYC suburbs
Programs: UA LT Gold 1.2MM (BIS), AA LT Plat (SUBs, BD/Bask), Hilton Dia (CC), Hyatt Glob (BIB), et. al.
Posts: 4,589
There are a couple of posts above referring to tax payments with this card, do we think that (estimated) tax payments will earn points and count toward whatever quasi-SUB (5x/5 days/max 50K) might be offered?
I probably made a mistake on my application for this card where I checked “Own” for housing status, probably should have put “rent”. I paid off my condominium mortgage a year ago, almost put “$0.00” for monthly payment on the Bilt MC application, but ended up putting “$x,xxx.xx” (monthly condo common charges).
From a brief perusal of the Bilt-pay-rent-by-check set-up procedures it appears it must be done on the mobile app and cannot be done on the full PC website. Is that correct? Thanks again.
#318




Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,959
I haven't used their service that pushes a check payment, but you can get the checking account/routing number from the website. This is what I used to pull an ACH payment from my HOA's property management company. The transaction did earn points.
#319




Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NYC suburbs
Programs: UA LT Gold 1.2MM (BIS), AA LT Plat (SUBs, BD/Bask), Hilton Dia (CC), Hyatt Glob (BIB), et. al.
Posts: 4,589
(Light bulb turning on, elevator getting to the top floor, 6th can added to make it a 6 pack, all 52 cards collected making it a full deck …) As the expression goes, please “explain it to me like I’m a 6 year old”.

My condo management company can and does, only for the past few years, at my request, initiate an automatic ACH transfer withdrawal from a bank account (instead of my mailing a check or initiating it via a Bill Pay process which results in the bank mailing a check as the condo management company is not an existing ACH transfer partner).
And I’ve been of the (perhaps erroneous) thought that only rent payments, ACH or mailed checks, initiated by Bilt would earn points.
Does “to pull an ACH payment from my HOA's property management company” mean that the ACH payment is initiated by your condo management company to withdraw the payment from your Bilt account (rather than Bilt initiating the payment to deposit the payment to your condo management account)?
Does the quote above accurately imply that an ACH transfer initiated by my condo management company, from my Bilt account using the routing and account numbers as provided on the website, will earn Bilt Rewards points? Thank you very much.

My condo management company can and does, only for the past few years, at my request, initiate an automatic ACH transfer withdrawal from a bank account (instead of my mailing a check or initiating it via a Bill Pay process which results in the bank mailing a check as the condo management company is not an existing ACH transfer partner).
And I’ve been of the (perhaps erroneous) thought that only rent payments, ACH or mailed checks, initiated by Bilt would earn points.
Does the quote above accurately imply that an ACH transfer initiated by my condo management company, from my Bilt account using the routing and account numbers as provided on the website, will earn Bilt Rewards points? Thank you very much.
#320




Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,959
Does to pull an ACH payment from my HOA's property management company mean that the ACH payment is initiated by your condo management company to withdraw the payment from your Bilt account (rather than Bilt initiating the payment to deposit the payment to your condo management account)?
Does the quote above accurately imply that an ACH transfer initiated by my condo management company, from my Bilt account using the routing and account numbers as provided on the website, will earn Bilt Rewards points? Thank you very much.
#321




Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NYC suburbs
Programs: UA LT Gold 1.2MM (BIS), AA LT Plat (SUBs, BD/Bask), Hilton Dia (CC), Hyatt Glob (BIB), et. al.
Posts: 4,589
Understanding that a condo payment might not be considered by Bilt to be rental payment and having thought that the only way to earn points (for rental/condo payments not in the Bilt Rewards Alliance) was if Bilt initiates the payment, these questions have been important for my evaluation of the Bilt Mastercard.
Thank you very much for all your thoughtful replies, greatly appreciated, definitely your good deed for the day/week
. As you can tell, I’m detail oriented, it’s terrific to receive answers that are timely and pertinent. Thanks again.
Seems also that having the condo management company initiate pulling the payment allows you to have easy confirmation that the payment has been properly completed.
I was unaware of an important aspect of online bill paying (related to Bilt) until a few years ago when I had to change day-to-day checking accounts as Schwab was terminating day-to-day checking functions for the type of account I had. With existing (back-up rarely used) Chase and USAA checking accounts I learned that there are (at least) 2 completely different ways for a bank’s Bill Pay system to deduct a (mailed, not an ACH) Bill Pay amount from one’s account. At that time, Chase deducted a mailed Bill Pay payment from my account balance when the check was mailed, leaving me no way to know if the check was ever received (and properly credited). At that time (and still now) USAA deducts a mailed Bill Pay payment from my account balance when the check is deposited by the recipient and clears my USAA account, thus I have proof the check was received. (USAA is now still my day-to-day checking account.)
Thus I’m wondering if Bilt initiates a mailed condo payment, does the charge to the Bilt credit card occur when the check is mailed OR when the check clears after being deposited by the condo management company? (My limited understanding is that if Bilt mails a “rental” payment, the amount appears as a charge to the Bilt credit card, I hope that’s a correct understanding.) Thanks again.
Yes, that's right. I have the condo management company take the payment from the Bilt account (for which Bilt provides an account number and routing number that resembles a regular checking account).
...
I only have one data point so far for this, but, yes, I earned points last month when I had the condo management company pull the payment. ….
...
I only have one data point so far for this, but, yes, I earned points last month when I had the condo management company pull the payment. ….
I was unaware of an important aspect of online bill paying (related to Bilt) until a few years ago when I had to change day-to-day checking accounts as Schwab was terminating day-to-day checking functions for the type of account I had. With existing (back-up rarely used) Chase and USAA checking accounts I learned that there are (at least) 2 completely different ways for a bank’s Bill Pay system to deduct a (mailed, not an ACH) Bill Pay amount from one’s account. At that time, Chase deducted a mailed Bill Pay payment from my account balance when the check was mailed, leaving me no way to know if the check was ever received (and properly credited). At that time (and still now) USAA deducts a mailed Bill Pay payment from my account balance when the check is deposited by the recipient and clears my USAA account, thus I have proof the check was received. (USAA is now still my day-to-day checking account.)
Thus I’m wondering if Bilt initiates a mailed condo payment, does the charge to the Bilt credit card occur when the check is mailed OR when the check clears after being deposited by the condo management company? (My limited understanding is that if Bilt mails a “rental” payment, the amount appears as a charge to the Bilt credit card, I hope that’s a correct understanding.) Thanks again.
#322




Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: NYC/LA
Programs: DL DM, UA Silver, Marriott Titanium/LTP, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 9,803
Heads up that there are reports this week on Reddit of Bilt accounts with the credit card being shut down for very odd reasons. Data points are not clear but for some reason the accounts (who all claim they were legitimately paying rent via ACH) are being flagged and being asked to provided copies of leases for verification. One poster claims she moved recently and is no longer paying rent via Bilt, another claims her two year lease was rejected because it was not signed within the past year; both accounts were shut down. Another account was shut down because the user was only using the credit card for small charges to meet the 5 transaction minimum per month, and Bilt claimed the micro transactions were against the T&Cs. All very odd.
#323




Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NYC suburbs
Programs: UA LT Gold 1.2MM (BIS), AA LT Plat (SUBs, BD/Bask), Hilton Dia (CC), Hyatt Glob (BIB), et. al.
Posts: 4,589
At least its just a shutdown from Bilt and/or Wells Fargo, small players in the points and miles game. Even if its extended to all WF products, it wouldnt be as crushing (for most people) as a Chase or AmEx shutdown.
#324




Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,959
Heads up that there are reports this week on Reddit of Bilt accounts with the credit card being shut down for very odd reasons. Data points are not clear but for some reason the accounts (who all claim they were legitimately paying rent via ACH) are being flagged and being asked to provided copies of leases for verification... Another account was shut down because the user was only using the credit card for small charges to meet the 5 transaction minimum per month, and Bilt claimed the “micro transactions” were against the T&Cs.
I would also need to read the fine print of the T&Cs, but there wasn't any overt messaging in the marketing materials indicating a minimum purchase amount for the 5 monthly transactions. In my case, I place unaligned spend on this card where I have discretion over the transaction date to happen on the 1st of the month. This is simply maximizing rewards. I have noticed that some online transactions have failed on the 1st of the month, but since I didn't try on other days I can't say if this is a pattern.
Regardless, I would relish a CFPB complaint if my account gets closed for my use case.
#325




Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: NYC/LA
Programs: DL DM, UA Silver, Marriott Titanium/LTP, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 9,803
A disturbing Reddit data point from this afternoon- someone said their rent fluctuates every month because the building's utilities are not individually metered, so the landlord splits the actual costs between the tenants each month. The variations were less than $100 each month.
Apparently this month, Bilt sent out their rent check, then flagged the account due to the monthly variations in rent payment and stopped payment on the check, and never told the user. It was only when the check bounced with the landlord that the user contacted Bilt, found out their account had been suspended, and was requested to submit a copy of their lease for review, which could take 3 weeks.
This is particularly concerning, because it says to me that there are things going on behind the scenes at Bilt that are driving them to this type of action, and also they're clearly under water when it comes to customer service. How could you suspend a user and stop payment on their rent check without even telling them???
Apparently this month, Bilt sent out their rent check, then flagged the account due to the monthly variations in rent payment and stopped payment on the check, and never told the user. It was only when the check bounced with the landlord that the user contacted Bilt, found out their account had been suspended, and was requested to submit a copy of their lease for review, which could take 3 weeks.
This is particularly concerning, because it says to me that there are things going on behind the scenes at Bilt that are driving them to this type of action, and also they're clearly under water when it comes to customer service. How could you suspend a user and stop payment on their rent check without even telling them???
#326




Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: NYC suburbs
Programs: UA LT Gold 1.2MM (BIS), AA LT Plat (SUBs, BD/Bask), Hilton Dia (CC), Hyatt Glob (BIB), et. al.
Posts: 4,589
I can see the Bilt routing and account numbers to give to my condo management company to start initiating monthly ACH pulls for my monthly charges but I don’t have any of the other information as required on the (partial) form below. Presumably I should check “Checking (account)”. Please provide Bilt or WF Financial Institution name and address or direct me to where on the Bilt website I can find that information. (The management company requests a voided check, presumably that’s not available from Bilt and I’ll need to tell the management company that it’s not available.) Thank you.
#327
FlyerTalk Evangelist



Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Upper Sternistan
Posts: 10,680
I can see the Bilt routing and account numbers to give to my condo management company to start initiating monthly ACH pulls for my monthly charges but I dont have any of the other information as required on the (partial) form below. Presumably I should check Checking (account). Please provide Bilt or WF Financial Institution name and address or direct me to where on the Bilt website I can find that information. (The management company requests a voided check, presumably thats not available from Bilt and Ill need to tell the management company that its not available.) Thank you.


Name: Evolve Bank And Trust
Address: Memphis, TN
Phone: 901-259-0796
I'd just use that.
#328




Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,959
A disturbing Reddit data point from this afternoon- someone said their rent fluctuates every month because the building's utilities are not individually metered, so the landlord splits the actual costs between the tenants each month. The variations were less than $100 each month.
Apparently this month, Bilt sent out their rent check, then flagged the account due to the monthly variations in rent payment and stopped payment on the check, and never told the user. It was only when the check bounced with the landlord that the user contacted Bilt, found out their account had been suspended, and was requested to submit a copy of their lease for review, which could take 3 weeks.
Apparently this month, Bilt sent out their rent check, then flagged the account due to the monthly variations in rent payment and stopped payment on the check, and never told the user. It was only when the check bounced with the landlord that the user contacted Bilt, found out their account had been suspended, and was requested to submit a copy of their lease for review, which could take 3 weeks.
This is all the more reason to do have your property management company do an ACH pull if that's an option.
A web search for the provided routing number corresponds to Evolve Bank & Trust for me as well. I agree with the information josephstern indicated.
#329

Join Date: Jan 2023
Location: DCA, IAD
Programs: Hyatt Globalist; AA Plat. Pro.
Posts: 249
I'm wondering if the people having issues (especially with rent) are in properties which are members of the Alliance that Bilt promotes? It's certainly not a good look, and I'm considering cashing out my points much more frequently.
#330


Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: SFO/YYZ
Programs: AC 35K|BA Silver|Marriott Plat|HH Diamond|Hyatt Globalist|ALL Plat
Posts: 2,814
Unlikely as if it is (mine is) the rent ledger is reflected on the Bilt site, including the breakdown of extra line items like trash/sewage/admin/etc, and the total account balance. In fact my property just recently removed their standalone rent portal so everyone has to use Bilt even if they don't have the credit card. I suspect this is another element of their business model as they probably get some amount of money for allowing property management companies to outsource the rent payment handling to Bilt.




