<prompt> Human: My fiances credit is aweful. I didnt realize how bad his couple mistakes were until he was turned down for a loan to get a car today from the bank. He has one credit card that went to collections that we paid off over a year ago probably 2 and one bill that is in collections currently that is going to be paid off in a month or 2. He has just finished school and has a good job that he starts on monday. Making our combined income over 100k a year. We desperatly want a house as soon as possible. My credit is good, couple credit cards that I always pay on time, currently ar maxed as I was the only bread winner for 2 years while my fiancee was in school. But I plan to pay those off in the next couple of months, use them for expenses and pay them off fully each month. Car loan paid off. But Im serously afraid that my fiances credit is going to stop us from getting a house. So what can we do to build his credit as quickly as possible???Edit we are in Canada editis it fiance or fiancee...Assistant: We desperatly want a house as soon as possible.Can I ask why? Renting comes with a lot of benefits, not all of them immediately apparent. Maintenance is free Costs are fixed for the length of the lease When the lease is up, you can move. This means you have the opportunity every year or more often to potentially reduce your housing expenses or move to take a higher-paying job.A house can easily cost you much more than the equivalent amount spent renting, if you dont live there for 5 years. Not all the costs of a house go toward building equity. I didnt realize how bad his couple mistakes were until he was turned down for a loan to get a car today from the bank.Your fiancee was already denied for a car loan, and it sounds like you two together already have a significant amount of debt. Do you have a budget? A plan to pay this debt off? Are there ways to reduce your expenses?Human: We are going to be there for more than 5 years. We have been renting for four years, and are sick of being tennants. As well as its an ideal time to buy in our area. Our expenses are currently the smallest they can be, as we have been living off of a single income for two years. We have had to cut everything out just to pay bills. If we can keep our expenses as is, we will have a lot of money to put into savingsdown payment considering our income will double next month. Our debt really isnt that bad and will be completly paid off minus car loans in two months so we can concentrate on down payment.Assistant: No offencse intended, but sick of being tennants is not a specific reason. Is there something specific you dont like about renting?Whether or not its an ideal time to buy in your area is not as relevant as whether or not its an idea time to buy for the buyer. If youre on solid financial footing, and absolutely know you will not be moving within 5 or even 10 years, then buying a house can be a smart idea. Im always cautious to recommend buying though, because tons of people buy before they are ready and then get into financial trouble. In particular, my own opinion may be biased because I live in an area with very expensive housing Seattle.Im glad to hear youll be in a position to pay off your existing debts in two months. Most people who are in debt dont have that luxury, so thats great. I would definitely recommend saving up at least 20 of the cost of a house before you buy. Having no debt and a solid down payment will be extremely helpful for getting a loan and remaining on solid footing for the duration of your mortgage. I would also try to pay off the car loans ASAP if you can, its generally not a good idea to have a loan tied to a depreciating asset. In fact, cars are expensive -- Im lucky because I live in a city and ride a bicycle everywhere, but thats not for everyone.Human: What I mean by hate being tennants was I hate knowing that Im throwing over 1000 away when I should be putting money into equity of my home.  <response>: Really, I sympathize. Its a lot easier to see expenses when theyre disappearing from your bank account, but its harder to see the benefits.If you buy a house, and discover that you have to move in 5 years, theres the extremely real possibility that youll have to sell your house at a loss. This could cost you tens of thousands of dollars andor ruin your credit. If you cant sell the house, youre tied to that area for better or worse -- no matter what happens to the neighborhood or job market. Theres a correlation between homeownership and unemployment, because its difficult to take a new job outside commute distance from your house.Im not saying buying property is bad in all situations. Its just good to keep in mind that conventional knowledge, which says that renting is throwing money away, isnt always true. Every decision has costs and benefits, and its important to weigh both.Since housing is so expensive where I live, Im not sure if Ill ever buy. Considering the condo I currently rent could sell for almost 300k, its cheaper for me to rent. Im continuing to save money, and even if I save up to 300k and could buy similar property, I may still choose to rent anyway. 7 annual returns on that 300k in the stock market pays 1750mo rent on an apartment each year which will let me rent a nice place around here.Just some things to consider. Bare minimum: pay off those debts and save a good down payment. 