<prompt> Human: Hi guys! So just to give you a little back story, Ive had kind of a rocky start to adulthood. I was booted from my parents home when I was 14 because of addiction issues and spent the next 7 years in the system. I was fortunate enough to find a great job in sales when I was 20 that allowed me to be somewhat independent, but I still couldnt escape my demons and spent the next 5 years in the thick of drug addiction. After a stint in jail for possession, I was able to turn my life around and now have about 2 years 4 months clean time under my belt. I have a steady job, a car thats paid off and a place with my girl whos now 4 months pregnant with a boy! Given the recent turn my life has taken for the better, I am beginning to turn my attention to fixing my finances. Over the next few months I have about 3k in legal expenses I will need to pay off, but after that my monthly expenses will be as follows:Rent: 300Food: 200Phone: 130Fuel: 90Gym: 40Taxes: 140Income is steady at 36,400. I contribute 5 to a 401k and pay 50 weekly for health and dental. Not listed on my report is about 5K in back taxes I am on payment plans for, state and federal. I used credit karma for the first time today and discovered I have 557556 on TUEQ. All of the accounts reported are bills placed for collections from the cable company, phone company, national grid and 2 credit cards that I maxed out and closed immediately like an idiot in 2009. I will able to pay the debt off fairly quickly...my question is how do I do this most effectively, and what can I do in the short term aside from opening a secured credit card to boost my score? Id like to be able to call myself a homeowner within 3 years...and I know I have my work cut out for me. Thank you for reading!  <response>: Creditboards forumGet to reading.Another thing youre going to run into: on that income youll have trouble securing such small loans for properties you could reasonably afford 2x annual income. 