<prompt> Human: Hi Guys,Let me tell you a bit about my situation. My long term SO has been offered 50,000 towards buying a home. At the moment I am in my final year in college and I am not working. She is full time employed.We are unsure how to proceed, she can more than likely get a mortgage for another 50k so that we can buy a small apartment for about 100k. With a view to paying off the 50k as quickly as possible and eventually trading up to a nicer place.We will probably live in this house at least until I am finished college, but due to the nature of my degree we may need to move to a bigger city for me to find a good job but we could stay in the city we are currently in I will be working in the tech sector so finding work straight out of college shouldnt be difficult.We could rent out the apartment during this time if we need to move. There is a huge rental market in the city we currently liveThe other option is that we can wait a few years, save as much as possible and just try to buy our dream place at that point. We would be eligible for a much higher mortgage once I have been working for a while.Basically I am just unsure what is a good option here.The 50k is unusable unless going directly towards the purchase of a property.Some more info on buying in Ireland:In Ireland a first time buyer must have 10 of the purchase price in order to get a mortgage on a home. A second time buyer must have at least a 20 deposit. - Should we buy now? Pay off the apartment as quickly as possible and have an asset going forward? Also means our rent will be going directly towards the mortgage This gives us the ability to rent it out or resell to finance a deposit on a bigger place.Or- Should we wait? Leave the 50k where it is save for a few more years while renting and attempt to buy a nicer place at that point?I would really appreciate any advice at all that you can give me. I have been racking my brain and I am really unsure what the best course of action here is.Thank you very much for your time.Edit: thanks for all the replies! Just regarding the eventuality that we do break up, we have already discussed this and basically the upfront mortgage, cash and deeds will be hers. I will be paying her rent in the apartment. If we do break up she will be able to afford the repayments alone. The aim was in the future, if we do get married as planned we would have the apartment or we could wait and use the 50k towards a family place.  <response>: I see a few big risks here:1 Moving to a larger city means you either have to become a long-distance landlord, which can carry a lot of work and risk, or sell the place, which can get very expensive itself. In the U.S., buying vs renting usually works out so that if you intend to sell within 3 years, renting is cheaper due to the transactional costs involved and far less risky.2 You arent married so you need to plan for what will happen should you two split so that neither one of you is losing out financially. Im not familiar with how property law works in Ireland, so cant really give specific advice. Having to go through getting rid of a place together and dividing equity after a break-up is potentially very stressful.3 Owning a major asset together changes the dynamics of a relationship. Youre going to be bound together financially and this can impact decisions about your relationship and its future. E.g., one of you wants to move on from the relationship, but getting out is too expensive. Presumably you are not ready to be married, but youre making financial decisions as though you are.Personally, Id lean toward letting the 50k sit a bit longer until you have a better idea of your futures. Buying is likely a bit better financially if you stay in the same area and stay together long-term, but in other scenarios, you could end up really regretting it. 