Pay your rent with money orders or checks!

If you are lacking excellent credit or you are just starting out you should never pay cash for your rent.   Lender's want hard copy proof that you have been paying your rent on time every month and they want copies of canceled checks or money orders.  Just having your landlord fill out a form or write a letter saying you paid rent on time will no longer work like it used to years ago.  

What is the biggest hurdle we see lately for home buyers? A lack of credit...

To get a good credit score you need to establish credit and should typically have at least three current tradelines reporting to the credit bureau.  Credit cards are very important!   Even a small credit card with a $200 limit will help your score.   Try to keep a balance on your credit cards but try to keep the balance under 20% of the available credit.   You would be surprised how much this tip can help your score.