smart: I make great money, my credit is very shacky with a small FICA Score of 590, Now that I am making good money I am paying off my debts and should be debt free in a yr. Also in 1 yr my contracted job ends. I am in the middle of making a transition, of opening a buisness, and realisticly looking at making between 6,000 on shaky months and atleast 9,000+ on normal to good months. But my Credit is bad and I found A condo I would like to own , provided the Contract is Favorable should I do rent to own. I mean I cant be 100% my buisness plan is going to go exactly how I want it to go. I think I am a smart buisness minded individual, before I make this decision, I would like thaughts from other intelligent people. Please keep in mind I am in Central Cali, and the Market is down right now. Any inputs would bve greatly apreciated.For my particular situation, Would it be smart for me to rent to own a home?you can get the mortgage any time you want. right now, when your credits core is low- you will get higher rate and they will ask for down payment. if you sign contract for rent to own- they will ask you for deposit also. in the next year you looking to change your job and become self employed person- this will be the issues for the lender, because they look 2 years your work history and in one year from now you will have to use no income verification programs which always come with the higher interest rate, then conventional loans. it is also hard to predict how much your credit will improve over one year- i don't know what is on your credit . it is also hard to say what interest rate will be in the next year. if i will you i will shop around and check if in your situation you can get the mortgage and if you can afford the payment i will buy and meantime work on the credit and refinance whenever you ready and you can lower your payment. also if you own the house ,will be easy for you to get any loans to expand your business, you will have some collateral to borrow against if you need cash in the future.|||Hi! #1 priority for you is to get your financial house in order. Here are my reccomendations before owning (I know, trust me). a) You should have 3 - 6 months living expenses in a savings account. b) You should have secure, stable employement. c) Increase your credit score! The better it is the lower the interest payment. d) For the next six-months, pretend you are living in that condo. Pretend like you are paying the bills you would have if you lived there....for example, mortgage payment. If your rent is less than the mortgage would be, put the excess in an account. Put the cost of utilities, upkeep, insurance, etc. in an account. If you can manage to do this, then you are ready. Owning comes with a lot of extra bills. Allow 20 - 30% of your mortgage amount as extra expenses. e) Retirement??? If you have no money in a retirement fund, then now is not the time to own.For my particular situation, Would it be smart for me to rent to own a home?Given your situation, i would sugggest saving up some money and improving your credit. Real estate prices are falling and you might get a better price in the future. Fix your finances so that you are not shakey !|||Wow, you've got alot of options...but if you want to play it safe, put a 10%-20% deposit to reduce your payment with a low rated 5yr ARM with a 1yr pre-payment penalty. That way if it all goes well or not you are safe to make better choices in the future.For my particular situation, Would it be smart for me to rent to own a home?If you really like the place, rent to own is a great idea if they will take you on that basis. I wish I could do it. I'd say you want to be prepared to live there at least five years to make it worthwhile, however, so think about that before you decide. If you move soon after, you're probably going to lose out. If you wait a few years, the prices will be going way back up, and you will already have yours locked in by the rent-to-own agreement.