A stupid mistake l made when l was 19 has ruined my credit ....(that was almost 5 years ago).
However, now l make $80 000/year and can afford mortgage payments (I've never been late or had problems paying a $1300 rent for the past year).
What are my options? l do not wanna rent for much longer, as the market here keeps going up, and l wanna buy a house before it gets worse (which is what is predicted).
Any advice is greatly appreciated.
l should add that l live in Canada.

l am in the same boat as you girlfriend. l was stupid in my teens as well and boy have l paid for it and then some.
Yes you can get a loan for a house ,but your payments will be higher because you will have a higher interest rate.
You also have the option of waiting a couple more years. Usually things like this drop off in 7-10years.
Good luck!

If u make this much money a year u should be able to do the following:

No. 1 - start putting money into a savings account every month
to accumulate ur down payment.
You will need at least a 20% down payment.

No. 2 - l do not know what is wrong with ur credit because there r many ''stupid'' mistakes one can make that stick around on the report for a while even after the financial part of it has been taken care of.

So for now .. if u still owe money on an account - then l would suggest pay it off as soon as possible.

If it is paid off & the ''bad credit'' is there because of ur history..
then u can do two things. Wait another 2 years & most likely the shadows will have disappeared off ur credit report.

Try to get a credit card. l know sounds crazy. but if u have a card & for instance charge only $20 a month & pay this off every month then within 6 months u will see an immediate improvement on ur credit score. Stick with the $20 plan so. & do not ever charge more than 10% of ur total credit limit on this card. The point here is to show that u can handle a line of credit responsibly & that u use it wisely & of course that u pay ur bills on time..

If u r in one of the few pockets of the housing market that are
still going up.. then l would suggest to look a little bit closer.
It could be that ''reality'' has not caught up with ur neck of the wood.
Study the foreclosure listings for ur area & unless there r hardly any foreclosures or REO (bank owned properties) listed for ur area
you might just have to wait a bit for the reality shock to set in.

For now. just keep saving for ur down payment & trust me
within 2 years u will have a sizable amount together & by then the housing market may look totally different. Because then u r a rarity - As in somebody that has good credit & the cold hard cash for a real downpayment.

l would start by checking my credit if l were you. It would be good if u could get rid of anything that is negative on ur report. Negative items stay on ur credit for about 7 years. If u filed bankruptcy then it can stay for 10 years. Lenders r more strict in what they will accept. There r still the sub prime type of loans available but u will pay a premium for getting the loan. You will likely need a good down payment. Real estate is down across the country. It will likely go lower. l would take my time. Lenders will probably want to see the last two years tax returns. They want to make sure u can pay for the loan. Keep in mind that there is more to owning a home than the mortgage payment. There always seem to be something to do around the house.

If u have to ask this question on this forum & u make $80,000 per year, Something tells me that this annual income will not last. Since u r personally rich yet lack the ability to obtain wealth because u r not well educated in financial matters. The fact that u r so young & this is ur income adds to the fuel.

l will let u know this, anything on ur credit report can be fixed before u buy a house, & it should be done. This will insure u the best interest rate & best overall deal. Do not let this fact stop u from buying. The average household in the US has two adults earning $40K each. You make that much by yourself, so take advantage of it.

As far as buying now, l would say it is the best time ever in history. l would wait until the new laws congress will enact soon, go into affect. Because, this will change the way mortgage companies finance housing. Most likely u will have new safe guards that will help u keep ur house in the future if we have another down turn in the market. If u buy before the new laws r in affect,( u will not be protected unless they enact a retroactive clause into the laws ), thus, u will be subject to the mistakes & lack of provisions in current laws that got many people ( first time home owners ) into trouble.

l would suggest that u speak with a certified financial planner & make a plan to buy a house & what type of terms r best, like variable or fixed & other investments with u income. You can buy a house with bad credit, but it will cost u more in collateral, down payment & interest. You & ur planner can put a plan together to fix ur credit first then buy the house u want with the new laws that will most likely help you.

Bottom line: fix ur credit & buy a house before the prices & interests rates start up again.

CG