<prompt> Human: Ive been reading articles about the rent to own industry recently, in particular one about rental theft , yes I know its buzzfeedSo I was wondering, is there ever a time where renting to own is a good idea or is it always a bad idea?  <response>: When people refer to how expensive it is to be poor, its due to things like this. In my opinion, the only time its a good idea to finance something is if you need it to continue providing food, shelter or employment. Examples a car loan if you have no other feasible way to continue collecting a paycheck, a home repair loan to fix a leaky roof that will continue causing damage if it isnt fixed or something along those lines. Mortgages also make financial sense often. Its also acceptable if you have a plan to put the money to work in a way that will allow you to pay it off and then continue making more money, as long as you accept the risk. Most of these rent to own deals exist to allow people to buy things they want and cant afford, the rub is its even less affordable this way than saving up. This country is desperate need of mandatory financialbudgeting courses. 