How to Earn Points By Paying Your Rent

Posted: 11/7/22 | November seventh, 2022

As an avid journey hacker, I’m at all times searching for new methods to earn extra factors and miles by way of my on a regular basis spending. Because of this, I earn over one million points every year, permitting me to get pleasure from all types of free flights and resort stays, upgrades, lounge entry, elite standing, and extra.

Travel hacking has saved me hundreds and hundreds of {dollars} through the years, and I wouldn’t be capable of journey as a lot with out it.

Nonetheless, there’s historically been one big expense that has at all times been exhausting to earn factors for: lease.

For years, journey hackers have taken benefit of short-term affords that waive bank card charges or gone by way of advanced procedures to pay their lease so they may get factors.

However these maneuvers have been all hit and miss and by no means lasted lengthy. Hundreds of potential factors continued to be left on the desk.

Till now.

Earlier this 12 months, a card referred to as Bilt got here out. And it has modified the sport.
 

What’s Bilt?

Bilt is a bank card that permits you to earn factors if you pay your lease (in addition to on on a regular basis purchases). You then use these factors such as you would another rewards program: you need to use them to e book journey immediately, you may switch them to journey companions, or you need to use a number of the different redemption choices.

There are two methods to earn factors with the cardboard: by renting a Bilt Alliance property, or by utilizing the Bilt World Elite Mastercard®.

Bilt Alliance properties kind a community of two million items throughout the US. However I’m not going to give attention to that. I’m going to speak about its bank card.
 

How does the Bilt reward card work?

When you open a Bilt Mastercard® (which is issued by Wells Fargo and has no annual charge), you go to the Bilt app or web site to arrange your recurring month-to-month rental funds.

Bilt then creates a novel checking account tied to your Bilt bank card in order that your lease is paid with an e-check fairly than by way of your bank card. This checking account is mainly a authorized “dummy” account created as a workaround for bank card processing charges. You don’t use it for anything, and you don’t withdraw or deposit cash from it.

At any time when these distinctive routing and account numbers are used to pay lease, your Bilt Mastercard® is charged for a similar quantity. (You continue to have to attach your private checking account to repay the cardboard every month.)

And, in case your property is old-school and solely accepts checks, you may nonetheless pay along with your Bilt card by way of the Bilt Rewards app, and Bilt will ship a verify in your behalf.

All of it takes about 5 minutes to arrange. Whenever you’re carried out, you’ll be incomes factors in your lease. I exploit it, so I don’t go away any factors on the desk.

Bilt Reward Perks

As soon as your account is about up, you’ll begin incomes one level per greenback spent utilizing the Bilt bank card on lease funds, as much as 50,000 factors every calendar 12 months. Whereas the mileage wanted without spending a dime flights varies drastically relying on many components, if you happen to play your playing cards proper, that many factors might get you a free round-trip flight from New York to London.

And, whereas incomes factors for lease funds is Bilt’s principal draw, you’ll additionally earn two factors per greenback spent on journey (when booked immediately or by way of the Bilt Journey portal) and three factors per greenback spent on eating. You’ll get one level per greenback on all different purchases.

Simply be aware that you must make 5 purchases monthly (with no minimal spending requirement) to earn these rewards.

You possibly can switch factors 1:1 to journey companions, together with American Airways, United, Emirates, Hawaiian, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada, Air France/KLM, Hyatt, and IHG.

The truth that they switch to American Airways and Hyatt actually units this card aside (moreover the lease factor). Nobody transfers to American, so it is a big promoting level for this card, as a result of it’s the one method to get AA factors with out having an AA card. And incomes Hyatt factors permits you to have a approach out of the Chase system.

You may as well redeem factors for health courses, like SoulCycle, Solidcore, Rumble, and Y7, and for gadgets within the Bilt Assortment, a curated choice of artisan dwelling décor gadgets. However redeeming for health courses comes out to round one level per cent — you get a greater redemption on journey purchases.

Moreover, purchases additionally show you how to earn standing within the Bilt Rewards program, primarily based on the full factors earned yearly.

The tiers for these Bilt Rewards are as follows (subsequent tiers embody every part within the aforementioned ones):

• Blue: Earn factors on lease and the flexibility to switch them 1:1 to journey companions
• Silver (25,000 factors per 12 months): 10% bonus factors if you signal a brand new lease or renew your lease, and curiosity in your factors steadiness (on the FDIC printed nationwide financial savings rate of interest)
• Gold (50,000 factors per 12 months): 25% bonus factors for brand spanking new leases/renewals and entry to a house possession concierge (who will stroll you thru the home-buying course of)
• Platinum (100,000 factors per 12 months): 50% bonus factors for brand spanking new leases/renewals and a free present from the Bilt Assortment of dwelling décor gadgets

Whereas the perks within the larger tiers aren’t terribly thrilling, they’re a pleasant method to earn much more factors in the event that they apply to you. However, even on the base degree, you may nonetheless reap the benefits of Bilt’s principal attraction: incomes factors on lease.

Along with incomes factors, the cardboard additionally provides you:

• Journey cancellation safety and interruption protection
• Journey delay reimbursement (for delays of six hours or extra)
• Automobile rental collision protection
• Cellphone safety (as much as $800 USD)
• No overseas transaction charges
• A free three-month DashPass and $5 USD off your first DoorDash order every month
• $5 USD Lyft credit score every month after taking three rides that month

Who is that this card for?

This card is suited to anybody who needs to earn factors on their month-to-month lease. When you arrange the web funds (you may also arrange auto-pay) and use your card 5 instances a month, it’s largely a “set it and neglect it” sort of card. With no annual charge, you don’t have anything to lose and solely factors to achieve.

The cardboard is very geared towards vacationers and restaurant-goers, because it affords 2x factors spent on journey and 3x factors on eating out. It’s greatest paired with different travel credit cards which have higher perks, good welcome bonuses, and better incomes charges, although.

I’ll in all probability begin utilizing the Bilt card as an alternative of my Chase Sapphire, as a result of I get a variety of Chase factors by way of enterprise spending, and I’m aiming to fly to Japan subsequent 12 months, so I need these AA factors (AA is a accomplice with Japan Airways).

Who is that this card not for?

As with every journey bank card, you shouldn’t get the Bilt card if you happen to’re already carrying a steadiness or plan to hold a steadiness. Rates of interest for journey bank cards are notoriously excessive, and the Bilt card is not any totally different, with hefty APRs of 19–27%. The factors simply aren’t value it if you happen to’re paying curiosity every month.

This card can also be not for anybody with poor credit score, as you want good or glorious credit score to qualify.

Moreover, the Bilt card received’t be for anybody searching for one with a giant welcome bonus (as there’s none), and it does rely towards Chase’s 5/24 rule (you may’t open greater than 5 Chase playing cards inside 24 months). In the event you’ve already opened 5 Chase playing cards or wish to open extra, you would possibly wish to skip this one for now.

In sum, if you’re a renter and wish to earn factors on this main month-to-month expenditure, then it’s value contemplating the Bilt card. It’s utterly free, and simple to arrange, so there’s actually nothing to lose. Even when your lease isn’t significantly excessive, factors are factors, and the Bilt card may very well be a pleasant extra useful resource for incomes these coveted factors and miles (particularly if you happen to fly American Airways, as that is one among their solely switch companions).

As the one rewards card that gives factors on lease utterly without spending a dime, Bilt is a welcome new participant within the journey area. For my part, it’s actually a no brainer if you happen to pay lease, so you can begin working towards some free flights and resort stays!