<prompt> Human: Im not sure what to do here. I just got a new job at a pay of 91,800 per year. Im married no kids, but relatively soon, 1.5yrs away, have a combined debt of 78k with a monthly minimum of 1250 due, am 28 years old and have nothing saved for retirement. My current plan is to rent a duplex at 1200month after util for 1 year and save enough over the next year to afford 20 down on a 150k house. We currently have 7000 in savings. Can I do something better?Im gonna roll 15 into my 401k and hit student loans hard. If my wife finds a job I expect another 20-30k in base salary.Assistant: Pay down the debt, get the monkey off your back, then worry about a home.Human: Yeah but renting means throwing away 1k per month. Isnt that of any concern? Why not establish equity in a house when possible? I didnt come here to not listen to advice, but dont feel that paying off debt first is necessarily the best option  <response>: You are not throwing money away. You are paying for a valuable service.Please forget the rent is throwing money away trope. It isnt true, and there is no one size fits all. In many cases renting is actually a financially superior option than buying. 