New Mesa Homeowners Card Will Reward Mortgage Payments

A new credit card from financial technology company Mesa is promising a long-sought-after feature: the ability to earn credit card rewards on your mortgage payments, without incurring processing fees.

The $0-annual-fee Mesa Homeowners Card, issued by Celtic Bank, will add another layer of incentives to Mesa's homeownership platform, which currently rewards you for getting a mortgage or refinancing through a lender or broker in their marketplace.

Typically, it's not advisable — and often impossible — to use a credit card to pay a home loan installment. Many mortgage lenders, credit cards issuers and/or card payment networks don't allow such debt-for-debt payments, and while some third-party platforms like Plastiq can facilitate it, you'll get hit with processing fees that would likely cancel out the value of any ongoing rewards.

The Mesa Homeowners Card, though, resolves these roadblocks, offering 1X rewards per dollar spent on your monthly mortgage payment, provided you meet certain terms (see below). The card also features rewards on other kinds of spending, from home improvement purchases to everyday expenses like groceries and gas.

The card is on a waitlist, but you can reserve your spot on that list by downloading the Mesa membership app (available for iPhones only). Mesa will be allowing people off of the waitlist in the coming weeks, in the order in which they joined, and they'll be notified when they can apply for the card.

» MORE: What to know about paying a mortgage with a credit card

What cardholders can expect

Here’s what you'll earn with the Mesa Homeowners Card:

• 3X Mesa points per dollar spent on home-related purchases, including home improvement, decor, maintenance and utilities, to name a few. 

• 2X Mesa points per dollar spent on everyday essentials, such as grocery, gas, and EV charging.

• 1X Mesa points per dollar spent on monthly mortgage payments linked through the Mesa app when you spend a minimum of $1,000 monthly with the card. 

• 1X Mesa points per dollar spent on all other purchases.

• Benefits that add up to over $800 in value, according to Tina Moore, head of commercial at Mesa. (Among those included are a home improvement credit, big box memberships with brands like Sam’s Club, home maintenance credits with Thumbtack, and pet care credits with Wag.) 

In order to earn points for mortgage payments, you’ll have to link the bank account associated with your mortgage payment in the Mesa app, Moore says.

Points can be redeemed for statement credits, gift cards, travel experiences, mortgage payments and home closing costs. The value of points may vary based on the redemption options selected.

Will it be a good deal?

As of this writing, the waitlist for the Mesa card isn't accessible through the web or via Android devices. These options will become available in the coming months, Moore says.

But if it becomes widely available, the card absolutely could be a good deal, offering rewards that traditionally haven't been available before, and on what is likely the largest single monthly expense for millions of Americans.

Still, as with the Bilt card (see above), there are some caveats. First, the Mesa card will only be valuable if homeowners can pay off their card balance on time and in full every month. Otherwise, interest charges will eat up the value of any rewards earned. (As of this writing, the Mesa card's terms, including its ongoing APR, were not available.)