October 27, 2025 | The Cards Guy Editorial Team
Bilt just confirmed a major overhaul to its rewards ecosystem. On January 1, 2026, the current Milestone Rewards program ends and will be replaced with a new currency called Bilt Cash. Bilt is pitching this as “real value you can use,” and honestly, for a lot of members, it probably is an upgrade — but it also tells us where Bilt is trying to push the brand next.
Let’s break down what’s changing, what you’ll earn, how you can redeem, and why people in the points world are calling this “Bilt 2.0.”
What Is Bilt Cash?
Bilt Cash is a cash-like reward balance you’ll earn on top of your regular Bilt points.
Here’s the core mechanic:
- Every time you hit 25,000 Bilt points earned, you get $50 in Bilt Cash.
- It doesn’t matter how you earned those points — rent, credit card spend, travel portal, etc.
- You’ll still earn normal Bilt points like you do now. Bilt Cash is in addition to those points, not instead of them.
So instead of today’s “milestone perks,” you’ll start getting something with an actual dollar figure attached.
Where can you spend Bilt Cash?
Bilt says Bilt Cash can be used inside its own network for:
- Hotels in the Bilt Travel Portal
- Dining and “mobile checkout” at partner restaurants
- Fitness classes
- “Home Delivery” purchases
- Exclusive/early-access experiences (think high-demand dining and events)
- Upgrades toward higher Bilt elite tiers, which matters for transfer bonuses and perks during “Rent Day” promos
In plain English: it’s like a closed-loop store credit. $10 in Bilt Cash is worth $10 in the Bilt ecosystem.
That’s very different from your main Bilt points, which you can still transfer to partners like Hyatt, American, Flying Blue, Alaska, etc.
What’s Going Away: Milestone Rewards
Under the current Milestone Rewards system, when you pass certain point thresholds you get to pick a perk like:
- Double points on dining for 7 days (capped)
- 2× on gas or groceries for 30 days (capped)
- A small chunk of bonus Bilt points
- A boost toward status
The honest take from the community? A lot of those milestone perks were tiny. People frequently ignored them because the upside was often limited to ~1,000 bonus points or a short-term multiplier in a single category — and you had to remember to activate it.
Bilt seems to know that. So instead of making you choose between a bunch of “2× for seven days up to 1,000 points” type coupons, they’re packaging your milestone into a simple line item: $50 in Bilt Cash per 25K points earned.
That’s easier to understand and easier to use.
Milestone Rewards will still run through the end of 2025. Anything you’ve already claimed stays valid until it expires. But starting January 1, 2026, new milestones will automatically pay out in Bilt Cash, not in rotating perks.
Is Bilt Cash Actually Better?
Short version: for most members, yes. For power users, “maybe.”
Why most people win:
- $50 per 25K points is straightforward, visible value.
- You don’t have to babysit a short promo window like “earn 2× gas this month (cap 1,000 points).”
- You can use Bilt Cash for real spend in categories Bilt is trying to own: dining, hotels, lifestyle, etc. That feels more like “cash back” than like “maybe useful if I remember to use it on gas this week.”
Why some people are nervous:
- Milestone Rewards also quietly offered things like status boosts (for example, helping you get closer to Platinum, which unlocks bigger Rent Day transfer bonuses). People who chased Bilt status specifically for those juicy transfer bonuses are watching very closely to see if Bilt Cash will let you essentially buy elite perks.
- Redemption is still locked inside Bilt’s world. You can’t just cash out to your bank.
There’s also a bigger-picture concern: once a loyalty program starts converting “fun surprise perks” into “fixed internal cash,” that’s usually a sign that the program is maturing, budgeting, and tightening. It’s the moment where hobbyists start asking: “Is this the start of the devaluation curve?”
Right now, it actually looks more usable than Milestone Rewards. The question is how long that lasts, and whether Bilt quietly raises how hard it is to earn the same effective $50 value.
The Bigger Story: Bilt Is Turning Into a Full Housing/Lifestyle Platform
Bilt is pretty openly moving beyond “pay rent with a credit card.”
Two huge moves that frame Bilt Cash:
1. Mortgage rewards in 2026
Bilt announced a partnership with United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), one of the largest mortgage lenders in the U.S. The pitch: starting in early 2026, borrowers whose mortgages are originated through UWM will be able to earn Bilt rewards on their monthly mortgage payments, similar to how renters earn points with Bilt today — but now on the homeowner side. UWM is also investing in Bilt as part of this deal.
That’s a huge signal. Bilt is trying to cover the entire housing lifecycle:
- Renting → earning Bilt points
- Saving toward a down payment
- Closing on a home
- Continuing to earn points after you own the home
There are still major unknowns:
- How many points per dollar on mortgage payments?
- Will rates be as competitive, or are you “paying for points” in the form of a higher interest rate?
- What happens if/when your mortgage is sold to a new servicer (which is extremely common in the mortgage world)?
Bilt says full details are coming in early 2026, and that UWM is just the first step — expect more lenders if this works. But make no mistake: you probably won’t earn rewards on any random mortgage. You’ll earn rewards on mortgages arranged through Bilt’s approved partners.
Why this matters for Bilt Cash:
If Bilt is going to position itself as “the loyalty layer for your entire housing life,” then having an internal currency with a clean dollar value — Bilt Cash — makes that ecosystem easier to control than a scattered list of rotating perks.
2. Status and transfer bonuses as a paid lever
Bilt Cash is also expected to be usable toward “status upgrades” or temporary access to certain elite-style perks like better Rent Day transfer bonuses and priority access to high-demand experiences. That is… notable.
If that plays out, Bilt Cash becomes not just store credit, but effectively “status fuel.” That’s appealing for casual members (you don’t have to grind spend in weird categories just to hit Platinum), but it also introduces a classic tension: if anyone can buy elite-style perks, elite means less.
The Cards Guy Take
Here’s what we’re seeing:
- This is absolutely cleaner than Milestone Rewards.
$50 per 25K points is easier to message to normal customers than “2× gas for 30 days up to 1,000 points.” - It also keeps you spending inside Bilt’s universe.
You can’t Venmo Bilt Cash to yourself. You have to use it on Bilt’s partners: restaurants, hotels in their portal, fitness, curated events, etc. That’s intentional. Bilt wants you living in Bilt, not just swiping the card for rent and transferring all your points out to Hyatt. - Bilt is clearly gearing up for Bilt 2.0 in 2026.
Between (a) this new Bilt Cash currency, (b) the announced mortgage/points partnership with UWM launching in early 2026, and (c) chatter about Bilt moving its card issuing relationship away from Wells Fargo and toward Cardless, the program is evolving fast. People are excited — and also a little worried — about what that means for long-term generosity.
Bottom line:
For everyday members, Bilt Cash is probably an upgrade over Milestone Rewards.
For power users, the real question is whether 2026 brings soft devaluations elsewhere.
FAQs: Bilt Cash & 2026 Changes
When does Bilt Cash start?
January 1, 2026. After that date, new milestones no longer trigger Milestone Rewards — they pay out in Bilt Cash instead.
How much do I earn?
You get $50 in Bilt Cash every time you earn 25,000 Bilt points. This is on top of the points themselves.
Can I cash Bilt Cash out to my bank?
No. Bilt Cash works like store credit inside the Bilt network (dining partners, hotel bookings in the Bilt Travel Portal, fitness, select experiences, etc.). $10 in Bilt Cash is worth $10 toward those redemptions.
What happens to my existing Milestone Rewards?
Milestone Rewards will still run through December 31, 2025. Anything you already claimed stays valid until it expires.
Is this better than Milestone Rewards?
In most cases, yes. The old milestone perks were often capped, limited-time category bonuses or tiny point boosts. Bilt Cash is cleaner, visible dollar value. The exception: if you used Milestone Rewards mainly to climb to higher elite tiers for bigger transfer bonuses, you’ll want to see how “status upgrades with Bilt Cash” is priced.
Will I still earn regular Bilt points?
Yes. Nothing changes about earning Bilt points on rent, spend, etc. Bilt Cash is layered on top.
Will I be able to earn rewards on my mortgage?
That’s the plan starting in early 2026 — but only with specific partner lenders. Bilt announced a partnership with United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), which says it will let borrowers earn rewards on monthly mortgage payments. We don’t yet know the earn rate, how competitive the interest rates will be, or what happens if your mortgage gets sold to another servicer.
Is Bilt getting stricter?
Bilt is maturing. Tighter economics, controlled perks, “cash-like” credit that keeps spend inside their ecosystem, and now a path into mortgages. That usually means less chaos, more structure… and eventually, yes, more rules.
TL;DR
- Milestone Rewards ends December 31, 2025.
- Bilt Cash starts January 1, 2026: $50 in Bilt Cash for every 25,000 Bilt points you earn.
- Bilt Cash is spendable inside Bilt’s network (restaurants, hotels in their portal, fitness, curated access, status-style perks).
- Mortgage rewards are slated for early 2026 via UWM, signaling that Bilt doesn’t just want to be “the rent card” — it wants to own your entire housing spend lifecycle.
- For most members, this is cleaner and arguably more valuable than Milestone Rewards. For maximizers, 2026 is the year to watch.
