There's a new way to earn rewards and pay down your student loans.
Bilt, a payments and loyalty platform, will let you redeem your Bilt Points toward eligible student loans. And you can earn rewards, when you pay your rent using a Bilt credit card or other payment method.
"With this feature, members can use points earned from paying rent to help reduce their student loan balances," Bilt said in its announcement.
You can earn one reward point per $1 spent paying rent with your card through the Bilt App or website, up to a maximum of 100,000 points each calendar year, according to Bilt's rewards terms. The redemption rate is 1 cent per Bilt point.
So if your rent is $2,000 each month, you can earn 2,000 points and redeem them for $20 toward your student loan balance. Every little bit helps, but the rewards aren't worth it if you don't pay your bill in full and on time each month. Otherwise, the card's interest charges could wipe out any reward value.
Here's more about Bilt's newest features and how it can help you tackle your debt.
How to apply Bilt rewards to your student loans
The new student loan feature lets Bilt Members redeem points earned from their regular purchases toward their student loans. Don't expect a few credit card purchases to earn enough rewards to wipe out your student loans, but the extra payments can help put a dent in your balance over time.
Bilt says it currently supports the following loan servicers, but expects to add more in the coming months:
- Aidvantage
- MOHELA
- Navient
- Nelnet
- Sallie Mae
When you're ready to redeem your rewards, you'll see which student loans are eligible, along with the loan's balance and other details like your monthly payment. It can take up to 10 business days for the rewards to be applied to your loans.
Keep in mind the payment may be applied to fees, penalties or interest before your balance, depending on your servicer's process.
How Bilt will let you earn rewards on student housing payments
The company also announced that you can now earn rewards on student housing and opt into its free rent reporting feature. Reporting on-time rent payments to all three major credit bureaus can help build students' credit history and establish credit while earning rewards.
Bilt plans to launch the new program in May, starting with American Campus Communities, and says it plans to add more communities in the future.
The Bilt card can help you earn rewards on rent, but if you'd rather have a card that helps you earn more on your everyday spending, the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express lets you earn 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year (then 1%) and 6% on select streaming services. Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout.
