April 1st Bilt Rent Day: Free Hyatt Explorist Status for 90 days. The Bilt Mastercard is great for all renters, but especially if you wait until their special promos on the first of every month (“Rent Day”). Now through April 1st, Bilt Members can get trial World of Hyatt Explorist status for 90 days with a Status Challenge opportunity to extend your status. I also got 100 Bilt points just for linking my World of Hyatt account.

Explorist is the second-to-top status (Globalist) and gets you upgrades to the best available room at check-in, up to but excluding suites and rooms with lounge access. Nice benefit if you already have some Hyatt rooms booked through July 16th.

– Link your Bilt Rewards and World of Hyatt accounts in the Bilt app under the “Travel” tab.
– Now through April 1st, choose “Unlock World of Hyatt Trial Status” on the Rent Day tab in the Bilt app.
– Receive confirmation by April 17th of your trial World of Hyatt Explorist status, and enjoy through July 16th. All stays checking in April 17th or after, and checking out July 16th or before, will count towards your qualifying nights.
– If you complete enough qualifying nights, enjoy Explorist (10 nights) or Globalist (20 nights) status through February 28th, 2025.

On 4/1/23, you can also get 6X points on dining, 4X points on travel, and 2X points on other purchases (except rent) for up to 10,000 points. Remember that you also need to make 5 transactions each statement period, so it’s best to get these done on the double points Rent Day where you get a minimum of 2x points.

Finally, they have a simple trivia game called “Point Quest” every 1st of the month, and last month I got around 200 free and easy Bilt points (worth 200 Hyatt points) just for playing it. Easy and fun.

Full review:

The updated Bilt Mastercard is a unique credit card that earns rewards on rent payments to any landlord. Bilt is a rent payment platform and they will send your landlord a check or ACH bank transfer so that your landlord will not have to do anything. In addition, the credit card has bonus categories and a variety of points redemption options like many other rewards credit cards. Here are the highlights:

• Up to 1X points spent on rent payments without the transaction fee, up to 50,000 points each calendar year.
• 3X points on dining.
• 2X points on travel including hotels, rental cars, and cruises when booked directly with airlines, hotels, and car rental agencies.
• 1X points on other purchases.
• Earn points when you make 5 transactions that post each statement period.
• When renting at a Bilt Alliance property, you can choose to have your rent payments automatically reported by Bilt to the three major credit bureaus each month; Experian(TM), TransUnion(TM), and Equifax(TM).
• No annual fee.
• World Elite Mastercard perks like cell phone insurance and purchase protection.

That means your rent can be up to $50,000 per year ($4,166 per month) and you would still be able to take full advantage of the 1X points per dollar spent on rent payments. They do require you to make at least 5 transactions per month (rent can be one), otherwise too many people might just put their rent on the card and not use the card otherwise.

Bilt has partnered with the owners of over 2,000,000 apartment units to create the Bilt Rewards Alliance. The easiest way is find out if you live in a qualifying property is to simply type in your address into the Bilt app.

Bilt also offers Double Points on “Rent Day”, aka the 1st of every month. This means that on the 1st day of every month, you can get 6X on dining, 4X on travel, and 2X on other purchases(except rent). They also offer other promos on this day. For example on 12/1/2022, you can transfer 1 Bilt point into 2 IHG points (1:2 instead of 1:1).

Bilt Rewards Points redemption options

Travel partners. Bilt Rewards points transfer on a 1:1 basis to the following hotel and airline partners. You can also get 100 bonus points for every loyalty program you link to Bilt.

• American Airlines AAdvantage
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• United Airlines
• Hawaiian Airlines
• FlyingBlue (Air France/KLM)
• Miles & Smiles (Turkish Airlines)
• Emirates Skywards
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
• British Airways Executive Club
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Aer Lingus Aer Club
• Turkish Miles & Smiles
• Iberia Plus
• World of Hyatt
• IHG One

Hyatt hotel points, American, United, and Hawaiian miles are likely the most useful points for the average US traveler. I am conservative when valuing points and miles due to their redemption hassles and steady threat of devaluation, so I would place the value here a 1 cent a point even though I definitely plan to exceed that. You may wish to use a different value.

Home Downpayment? Bilt says that your points can be redeemed at 1.5 cents per point when used towards a home downpayment. This seems like it might be rather complicated to actually redeem, so I would keep it mind but wouldn’t count on it. If you racked up 100,000 points over time, it would be nice to have $1,500 via this method.

Shop with Points at Amazon. You can link your Bilt Rewards points to Amazon and pay for your purchases at rate of 0.70 cents per point.

Rent. Bilt will let you convert points towards your next rent payment at 0.55 cents per point. This is not a good redemption rate when compared to the miles/Hyatt option. It’s too bad there is no easy, decent cash-out option.

Other options include fitness classes or physical items like “limited-edition” home decor or art in the “Bilt Collection” catalog. Personally, I like being able to add to my Hyatt and Canada Aeroplan stash.

Possibly help your credit score? When renting at a Bilt Alliance property, your on-time payment activity can be automatically reported to the three major credit bureaus. In addition, with the optional “BiltProtect” feature, your rent payments will be immediately withdrawn from a linked bank account so your credit limit is not decreased (and ideally your rent won’t contribute to your credit card debt).

How do I pay my landlord or property manager? They don’t take credit cards due to the transaction fees. Bilt will provide you with a bank ACH routing number and account number that you can use to perform an ACH transfer, or they will simply send a paper check on your behalf. You don’t actually pay with the credit card, nor do you or your landlord have to pay any credit card transaction fees.

Bottom line. The Bilt Mastercard offers a unique rewards structure targeted specifically at all renters with any landlord. At $2,000 a month in rent, the 1X rewards would add up to 24,000 points per year in rewards = 24,000 American/United/Hawaiian miles or 24,000 Hyatt points with no additional transaction fees and no credit card annual fee. You may even do better if you wait for a “Rent Day” promo on the first of the month. Something to consider if you already have to pay rent anyway.

The Discover it® card is a rewards credit card that offers 5% cash back on rotating categories each quarter and no annual fee. Right now, new cardholders get double their cash back during the entire first year (“Cashback Match”). This means that their 5% cash back on specific categories each quarterly will effectively get doubled to 10% cash back. Here are the highlights:

• We’ll double all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year. So if you earned $101 cash back, we’ll double it to $202—Automatically. Only for new cardmembers.
• 5% cash back in categories that change each quarter like gas, restaurants, home improvement stores and more—up to the quarterly maximum when you sign up. 1% cash back on all other purchases.
• Freeze It on/off switch lets you prevent new purchases, cash advances & balance transfers on misplaced cards in seconds by mobile app & online.
• 100% U.S.-based customer service.
• Free FICO credit scores updates on your monthly statement.
• No overlimit fee. No foreign transaction fee. No late fee on first late payment & paying late won’t raise your APR.
• No annual fee.

From January 1st through March 31st, 2023, you can earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent in the following categories:

• Grocery Stores (excludes Walmart and Target)
• Drug Stores
• Select TV & Music Streaming Services (including Amazon Music, Amazon Prime Video, AMC+, Apple Music, Apple TV, Audible, DirecTV Stream, FUBO, Google Play, HBO Max, iHeartRadio, MLB.TV, Pandora, Paramount Plus, Peacock, Showtime, SiriusXM, Sling TV, Spotify, Starz, Vudu, YouTube Music, YouTube Premium, YouTube TV)

From April 1st through June 30th, 2023, you can earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent in the following categories:

• Restaurants (includes eat-in, take-out, and delivery)
• Wholesale Clubs (like Sam’s Club and BJ’s)

Enroll after logging into your online account (look on the right-hand side). 5% rewards won’t apply until after you activate your rewards, so it is best to activate now before you forget. No annual fee.

Discover it $100 bonus details. If you are a new applicant and sign up via my Discover Card referral link, you will get a $50 improved $100 Cashback Bonus after your first purchase within 3 months of being account opening. You will also get Cashback Match for an entire year – a dollar-for-dollar match of all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year, automatically. During those 12 months, your 5% cash back rewards becomes 10% cash back, and your 1% cash back rewards become 2% cash back. You can verify this on the application by looking under “Terms and Conditions” or searching for “cashback match” and “statement credit offer”:

Cashback Match:
We’ll match all the cash back rewards you’ve earned on your credit card from the day your new account is approved through your first 12 consecutive billing periods or 365 days, whichever is longer, and add it to your rewards account within two billing periods.

* You will receive a $100 Statement Credit after making a purchase within three months of account opening. You must apply through your friend’s referral link and be approved by December 31, 2023 in order to be eligible for the $100 Statement Credit offer. Offer may not be combined with any other introductory offer. Promotional award will be applied within 8 weeks.

Rising rates 📈 also means credit card APRs are going up. Shopping around for the best balance transfer offer can save you thousands of dollars in interest. Below is a freshly updated list of the best 0% APR balance transfer offers. I try to include a good mix of different bank and lesser-known credit unions with easy membership requirements.

Finding the best combination of the longest 0% APR period and the lowest balance transfer fees. As of March 2023, the average credit card interest rate is 24% APR (!). If you are paying 24% APR, that’s like paying 2% on your balance every month (!). Paying a 3% upfront fee for an 21 month period of 0% would be like paying your current interest rate for 1.5 months and then getting 0% interest for the remaining 19.5 months. That may be preferable to 12 months at 0% with no balance transfer fee, especially if you spread out your payments over the entire period and use that additional time to pay it all off by the end. Here is an example comparison.

• $5,000 balance, 24% APR, 12 month payoff = $472 per month for 12 months. ($5,673 total paid)
• $5,000 balance, 0% APR + No BT fee, 12 month payoff = $417 per month for 12 months. ($5,000 total paid)
• $5,000 balance, 24% APR, 21 months payoff = $293 per month for 21 months. ($6,172 total paid)
• $5,000 balance, 0% APR + 3% BT fee, 21 month payoff = $245 per month for 21 months. ($5,150 total paid)
• $5,000 balance, 0% APR + no BT fee, 21 month payoff = $238 per month for 21 months. ($5,000 total paid) ** not an available offer **

Hopefully, you can see how one might prefer the $245 per month for 21 months, even thought it results in a slightly higher total amount paid than the $417 per month for 12 months. Especially if this creates an attainable plan that the end of 21 months, you are debt-free and you saved over $1,000 in interest ($6,172 vs. $5,150). Even if there was no balance transfer fee for 21 months (which unfortunately isn’t an option), the difference would only be $7 per month.

If you are sure you can pay it all off within the shorter 0% period, then you should pick the no balance transfer fee option.

1) Citi Simplicity® Card – 0% Intro APR on balance transfers for 21 months from date of first transfer. All transfers must be completed in first 4 months. This unique card has no late fees and no penalty interest rate. You also get 0% Intro APR on purchases for 12 months from date of account opening. After the intro APR offer ends, a variable APR will apply. There is a balance transfer fee of 3% of the amount of each credit card balance transfer or $5, whichever is greater. No annual fee.

2) BankAmericard Credit Card – 0% Intro APR for 21 billing cycles for purchases and balance transfers made in the first 60 days of opening your account. After the intro APR offer ends, a variable APR will apply. A 3% fee (min $10) applies to all balance transfers. No annual fee.

3) Wells Fargo Reflect Card – 0% Intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months from date of account account opening. Intro APR extension of up to 3 months with on-time minimum payments during the introductory and extension periods. (Note this is not the same as starting the countdown from the time of transfer.) Introductory balance transfer fee of $5 or 3% of the amount of each balance transfer, whichever is greater, for 120 days from account opening. After that, it is 5% of each credit card balance transfer or $5, whichever is greater. No annual fee.

4) US Bank Visa Platinum Card  – 0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 18 billing cycles. Balance transfer fee of $5 or 3% of the amount of each balance transfer, whichever is greater. Side perk of up to $600 in cell phone protection. No annual fee.

5) First Tech Fed Platinum Mastercard – 0% Introductory APR for 12 months on balance transfers and no balance transfer fee during the first 90 days after account opening. After the intro APR offer ends, a variable APR will apply. You must be an First Tech Federal Credit Union member to obtain this card, but membership is open to everyone who joins a partner organization for as little as $8 (Financial Fitness Association). You must also keep a nominal amount (usually around $10) in a share savings account. No annual fee.

6) Wings Financial CU Platinum Card – 0% Introductory APR for 12 months on balance transfers after account opening and no balance transfer fee. After the intro APR offer ends, a variable APR will apply. You must be a Wings Financial Credit Union member to obtain this card, but membership is open to everyone who joins a partner organization for as little as $5 (Wings Financial Foundation). You must also keep a nominal amount (usually around $10) in a share savings account. No annual fee.

7) La Capital FCU Rewards Card – 0% Introductory APR for 12 months on balance transfers and no balance transfer fee during the first 90 days after account opening. After the intro APR offer ends, a variable APR will apply. You must be an La Capitol Federal Credit Union member to obtain this card, but membership is open to everyone who joins a partner organization for as little as $20 (Louisiana Association for Personal Financial Achievement). You must also keep a nominal amount (usually around $10) in a share savings account. No annual fee.

Updated March 2023. Do you have small business income or work as an independent contractor? Freelance, Uber/Lyft, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Airbnb? A small business credit card separates your personal and business expenses and can build up your business credit profile. If you are not a corporation or LLC, you can apply as a sole proprietorship, with your name as the business name and your Social Security number as the Tax ID number. These are the top 10 credit card offers that I would personally apply for right now (or have already). Recent changes:

• Added Marriott 125k, Alaska 70k, Hilton 165k, Ink Cash 90k w/ No AF, Ink Unlimited 90k w/ No AF, Ink Preferred 100k/$1250.
• Removed Hawaiian 90k, Barc AA 80k+$95, JetBlue 80k+$99, United 150k, Marriott 125k, Delta 75k

This is a companion post to my Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers for personal cards. Notice that small business bonuses are on average even higher than those on consumer cards.

Chase Ink Business Unlimited Card

• $900 bonus cash back (Highest ever, Ending soon!) (90,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
• Flat 1.5% cash back on all purchases with no limit.
• No annual fee.
• Subject to 5/24 rule.*

Chase Ink Business Cash Card

• $900 bonus cash back (Highest ever, Ending soon!) (90,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
• 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on cellular phone, landline, internet and cable TV services each account anniversary year.
• No annual fee.
• Subject to 5/24 rule.*

Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card

• 125,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Limited-time offer. See link for details.
• Additional Free Night Award upon card anniversary (worth up to 35,000 Bonvoy points). Earn another additional Free Night Award after spending $60K in purchases on your Card in a calendar year.
• Annual fee is $125.

The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card

• 165,000 Hilton Honors points after $5,000 in purchases in first 3 months. Limited-time offer ends 4/5/23. See link for details.
• Earn a Free Night Reward after you spend $15,000 on purchases in a calendar year.
• $95 annual fee.

Chase Ink Business Preferred Card

• 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points (worth $1,000 straight cash back or $1,250 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards®) after $15,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
• 3X points on the first $150,000 spent on travel, shipping purchases, internet/cable/phone services, and advertising purchases with social media sites and search engines.
• Primary rental car coverage when renting for business purposes.
• $95 annual fee.
• Subject to 5/24 rule.*

United Explorer Business Card

• 75,000 bonus United miles after $5,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
• Free first checked bag for both you and a companion (a savings of up to $140 per roundtrip).
• Expanded award availability. Having this card makes it easier to redeem for that saver award economy ticket.
• 5,000-mile “better together” bonus each anniversary when you have both the United(SM) Business Card and personal Chase United credit card.
• Primary rental car coverage when renting for business purposes.
• $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99.
• Subject to 5/24 rule.*

Business Platinum® Card from American Express

• 120,000 Membership Rewards points after $15,000 on eligible purchases in the first 3 months.
• HUGE list of additional perks including $400 Dell, $360 Indeed, $150 Adobe, $120 wireless phone annual credits, $200 annual airline fee credit, $189 CLEAR credit, Centurion airport lounge access, and more. See link for details.
• $695 annual fee.

Hawaiian Airlines Business MasterCard

• 70,000 Hawaiian miles. 60,000 miles after $2,000 in purchases in first 90 days. 10,000 miles after a qualifying purchase is made on an employee card. See link for details.
• Receive a one-time 50% off companion discount for roundtrip coach travel between Hawaii and The Mainland on Hawaiian Airlines.
• $99 annual fee.

CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard

• 65,000 American Airlines miles after $4,000 in purchases in first the 4 months. See link for details.
• First checked bag free on domestic AA flights for you and up to 4 companions ($60 value per roundtrip, per person).
• $0 annual fee for the first year, then $99.

World of Hyatt Business Card

• 60,000 Hyatt points after $5,000 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details and rough valuation of points.
• Up to $100 in Hyatt statement credits – spend $50 or more at any Hyatt property and earn $50 statement credits up to two times each anniversary year.
• $199 annual fee.
• Subject to 5/24 rule.

Bank of America Business Advantage Cash Rewards Card

• $500 statement credit after $5,000 in purchases in the first 90 days. See link for details.
• 3% cash back on your choice of six categories. 2% cash back on dining and unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases. The 3% and 2% cash back applies to the first $50,000 in combined category/dining purchases each calendar year, 1% thereafter.
• No annual fee.

US Bank Business Leverage Card

• 75,000 bonus points after $7,500 in purchases (on the Account Owner’s Card only) in first the 4 months. 75,000 bonus points can be redeemed for $750 in cash back. See link for details.
• Availability may be restricted to certain states.
• $0 annual fee for the first year, then $95.

Capital One® Spark® Miles for Business Card

• 50,000 miles (worth a $500 statement credit) after $4,500 in purchases in the first 3 months. See link for details.
• Flat 2X points per dollar spent on all purchases with no limit.
• $0 annual fee for the first year, then $95.

JetBlue Business Card

• Up to 70,000 TrueBlue points. 60k miles after $2,000 on purchases in first 90 days, and 10k miles after a purchase is made on an employee card. See link for details.
• First checked bag free for the primary cardmember and up to 3 companions when tickets are purchased with your JetBlue Plus Card.
• $99 annual fee.

Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Business Card

• Up to 70,000 American Airlines miles. 60k miles after $2,000 on purchases in first 90 days, and 10k miles after a purchase is made on an employee card. See link for details.
• First checked bag free on domestic AA flights for you and up to 4 companions ($60 value per roundtrip, per person).
• $95 annual fee.

Alaska Airlines Visa Business Card (Bank of America)

• 70,000 Alaska miles + Companion Fare Voucher after $4,000 in purchase within 90 days. See link for details.
• Companion fare voucher is “Buy one ticket, get one for $122” ($99 fare plus taxes and fees from just $23).
• Free checked bag on Alaska flights for you and up to six other passengers on the same reservation (worth $60 roundtrip per person).
• $70 annual fee for company, plus $25 per card.

* Note: Certain Chase cards have a “5/24 rule” which is an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards on your credit report within the past 2 years. This rule applies on a per-person basis, so if you are new, you might want to start with those Chase cards.