Episode Summary: Bilt Card 2.0 Explained: Can Rent (or a Mortgage) Earn Points—and Is It Worth the Math?

Podcast: Smart Travel: Upgrade Your Getaways
Hosts: Sally French & Megan Coyle (NerdWallet Travel)
Date: January 21, 2026

Overview: Main Theme and Purpose

This episode is a deep dive into Bilt’s new credit card lineup and loyalty program—"Bilt 2.0"—with a focus on whether it’s worth paying rent or a mortgage with these cards to earn points. Sally and Megan (your “travel nerds”) break down the math, rules, earning rates, redemption options, and practical pros and cons for maximizing travel rewards using Bilt’s new cards. They also discuss recent travel credit card news, give budgeting tips, and answer a listener’s travel-redemption question, all while maintaining their trademark conversational, witty style.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Travel Credit Card News & Updates

• Hyatt Card Offer (03:17):

  • New Hyatt limited-time welcome offer: Up to 5 free nights at category 1-4 hotels after hitting spending milestones.
  • Sally and Megan highlight appealing properties and value, while cautioning listeners about the spending requirements and expiration (Feb 26).

• Southwest Airlines Assigned Seating (04:03):

  • Southwest moves to assigned seating to reduce airport chaos, but possibly at the expense of "pick any seat" tradition.
  • Discussion about ways to improve boarding positions, elite status, and credit cards.

• TSA REAL ID Change (06:20):

  • Starting Feb 1, no REAL ID at the airport = $45 fee and extra 30-min wait for alternative ID verification.

• NerdWallet Travel Rewards Coaching Giveaway (07:24):

  • Chance to win a points-and-miles strategy session with expert Aaron Hurd.

2. Why Bilt Is (Still) Worth Discussing

• Bilt isn’t just for renters anymore—now mortgage payers can earn points.
• Bilt points are a transferable currency, making them highly valuable for travel, similar to Chase and Amex points.
• Hosts clarify editorial independence from Bilt, despite sponsorship ads.

3. How Did Bilt Work Before? (09:47)

• Original Model: $0 annual fee, earn 1 point per rent dollar if 5 card purchases/month were made (aka the “banana hack”).
• Problem: Wells Fargo lost money due to minimal spending and huge points payouts (reportedly $10 million/month loss), prompting the need for changes.

4. The New Bilt Cards and Earning Schemes (11:24, 12:12)

• Three New Cards:
  • Bilt Blue: $0 annual fee
  • Bilt Obsidian: $95 annual fee
  • Bilt Palladium: $495 annual fee

Earning Points on Rent and Mortgage—Three Complex Tiers (13:42)

• Tiered Earning Structure:
  • Spend a percentage of your housing payment (rent/mortgage) on non-housing purchases using the card; percent spent = points per dollar earned on your housing payment.
• Sample Math:
  • E.g., Pay $4,000/month rent. Spend $1,000 (25%) on other items → 0.5 pts/dollar on rent.
  • Spend $3,000 (75%) → 1 pt/dollar on rent.
  • Spend $4,000 (100%) → 1.25 pts/dollar on rent; but this is rare and mostly for those with very low rent.
• Minimum Earning:
  • If you spend less than 25% of your rent on other purchases, you get a flat 250 points.

“According to Nerdwall's valuations, Bilt points are worth about 1.8 cents each.”
—Megan Coyle [13:42]

Option 2: Bilt Cash & The New 3% Fee (17:46)

• Alternative Earning:
  • Get 4% Bilt Cash (not cash back—restricted use) on non-housing purchases, which can offset a 3% fee to earn points on rent/mortgage.
  • Bilt Cash expires at year-end (except for $100 rollover).
  • Redemption options limited—Lyft credits, fitness, certain merchants.
• Math Example: Spend 75% of rent/mortgage ($3,000 for $4,000 rent) on the card’s other categories to have enough Bilt Cash to cover the 3% fee for housing points.
• Opportunity cost: You could get better cashback or points with less effort elsewhere unless you really value Bilt’s travel partners.

Maximalist Value & The Catch (22:35)

• Palladium Card Perks:
  • 2 pts/dollar (at 1.8¢ each) = 3.6% “return” on general spend, plus 4% Bilt Cash—so, potentially 7.6% if you maximize everything and use the right redemptions.
• Catch:
  • Bilt Cash redemption is limited; not all categories offer full value, and redemption caps/restrictions may apply.

“You’re getting a 7.6% return rate on your everyday purchases with the Bilt Palladium card.”
—Megan Coyle [23:15]

• Strategic Take:
  • Best value comes from maximizing transfers to partners like Alaska or Hyatt, NOT paying rent/mortgage; Bilt’s signature feature is actually the least lucrative for super-optimizers.

General Opportunity Cost & Confusion

• Bilt 2.0 is mathematically complex (“made us really good at algebra”).
• Frequent, last-minute changes breed uncertainty and erode trust (mid-recording update!).
• Multiple currencies (Bilt Points, Bilt Cash) increase confusion even for enthusiasts.

“You actually have to tell me how much your rent is, how much you plan to spend on this card, before I can tell you if it’s good for you or not.”
—Megan Coyle [29:30]

5. Product Rollout Drama & Community Reactions (29:14)

• Messy communication, last-minute rollouts, heated subreddit outrage, and conflicting customer service answers.
• Hosts caution listeners to expect more changes and possible restrictions/caps as Bilt reacts to user pushback.

“This rollout has not inspired confidence.”
—Sally French [32:13]

6. Card Feature Breakdown (34:57, 35:13)

• Bilt Blue: 1 pt/$, $0 fee
• Bilt Obsidian: $95 fee, 3x dining/groceries (pick one), 2x travel, $100 hotel credit (split in two), 2-night min.
• Bilt Palladium: $495 fee, 2x everywhere, 4% Bilt cash, $400 hotel credit (split), $200 annual Bilt cash, lounge access (Priority Pass for 2 guests), 50k points signup + $300 Bilt Cash ($1200 in value by NerdWallet estimate).

Comparisons (With Chase, Capital One Venture X, etc.)

• Obsidian likened to Chase Sapphire Preferred.
• Palladium compared to Venture X (with differences in lounge quality, bonus categories).
• Note: All Bilt cards get 1.25¢ value/point in portal, matching old Chase portal value.

Transfer Partners: Value & Strategy (40:59)

• Best Partners:
  • Alaska Airlines (Atmos) — unique/valuable redemption options, even if you’re not west coast.
  • Hyatt — for all-inclusive/high-value hotel stays.
  • Japan Airlines, United, Southwest, IHG, Marriott, Hilton, Avianca, FlyingBlue (Air France/KLM), Air Canada, etc.

“Alaska Airlines and their partner Hawaiian Airlines...I have been able to book some really excellent award flights for other people that live on the east coast.”
—Megan Coyle [43:16]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Banana Hack Lore
“All these people…everyone just made the cheapest possible expense that they could to get those five purchases. Banana purchase times five. I love that.”
—Sally French [10:12]

On the Rollout Chaos
“Built 2.0, now, charitable Sally will acknowledge that the company is listening to their customers...However, Pessimistic Sally is very skeptical about this and I’m not so confident...as they saw all the pitchforks.”
—Sally French [33:09]

On Opportunity Cost
“There is an opportunity cost to your own mental gymnastics and your mental sanity of remembering to spend this money. Absolutely.”
—Sally French [45:00]

On Super-Optimizers
“Not as much as what the super maximizers could and shout out super maximizers. I know they listen to the show. If that is you, I love that.”
—Sally French [44:03]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:19] Credit card news (Hyatt, Southwest, TSA changes)
• [08:12] Why talk about Bilt? Bilt 2.0 for renters/owners
• [09:47] How Bilt worked before (& Wells Fargo losses/the “banana hack”)
• [11:24] New card lineup explained
• [12:12] Earning points on rent/mortgage: Tiered system
• [13:42] Value of Bilt points & sample earnings math
• [17:46] Option 2: Bilt Cash & 3% fee method explained
• [22:35] Stacking earnings math: Palladium’s maximum value scenario
• [29:14] The messy rollout, mid-recording changes, subreddit outrage
• [32:34] Dangers of product instability and confidence erosion
• [34:57] Card-by-card feature breakdown and fee discussion
• [40:59] Transfer partners—why they matter, who benefits
• [47:19] Listener question: How to best redeem miles to Greece (with bonus redemption strategies)
• [50:18] How to contact the show and share feedback

Takeaways & Advice

• Best for Super-Optimizers: Bilt 2.0 is most valuable if you do lots of monthly spending, can maximize transfer partners, and don’t mind jumping through mental hoops.
• Rent/Mortgage Payments: You can earn points, but—after accounting for the effort, fees, and lost opportunity for better rewards elsewhere—it’s usually not game-changing except for specific use cases.
• Rollout Instability: The program rules are changing fast. If you want stability (and don’t want to constantly change payment setups), wait and see.
• Transfer Partners Are the Real Draw: Alaska, Hyatt, and other transfer partners are where the magic happens—especially if you’re already a points optimizer.
• Bilt Cash Limitations: Treat this like a coupon book you must use fast and strategically.
• For Most Users: If you don’t like complexity, stick to simpler high-cashback or travel points cards and skip the gymnastics.

Final Thoughts

Sally is “waiting and seeing” before jumping in, despite the allure of 7%+ returns, due to ongoing instability and complexity. Megan is on the fence—tempted by the signup bonuses/groceries category, but wary of the effort. The show closes by urging listeners to weigh opportunity costs, fit cards to overall strategy, and not rush into Bilt if it doesn’t feel right.

Listener Questions:

• They love to answer real travel hacking scenarios—write in or DM!

Overall Tone:
Conversational, nerdy, wryly skeptical, occasionally math-nerdy but always practical and audience-focused. The hosts balance enthusiasm for points optimization with healthy caution about complexity and instability.

Best For:
Travel maximizers, “points and miles” hobbyists, and anyone considering a new twist on earning rewards from rent or mortgage payments.
Not for: Simplicity-seekers who don’t want to track lots of moving pieces.

For full details, links, and any referenced articles, visit the episode description or NerdWallet.com.