Engaged? Get your free credit reports before you tie the knot. - By: John Rasor

Marriage is about much more than love and romance. It's about a life partnership, and that partnership includes money. So before you set the date, check your credit scores.

If you're dreaming of setting up housekeeping in that cottage with the white picket fence - or that condo in the sky - you'll either need a lot of money in your pocket, or good credit.

And, you won't know unless you ask. If either you or your beloved has bad credit, your dream could go up in smoke. In fact, if one of you has really bad credit, you might not even be able to rent a decent apartment.

A life coach would probably tell you not to marry until you both learn to handle money wisely - and that's not a bad idea.

If, however, you are determined to marry soon, settle your housing question before the wedding.

If you plan to rent, do it now, in the name of the party with the best credit.

If you plan to buy, get started with a mortgage lender and find out how much you can spend for a house based solely on the income of the person with the best credit scores.

Because your mortgage lender will only be able to use that one income, you may have to settle for a little less expensive house than you'd prefer, but that's not really a bad thing. It means that when you combine your incomes, making that payment each month will be far easier than if you'd borrowed to the limit of what you can afford together.

Remember, Realtors and Mortgage brokers get paid a percentage based on the dollar value of your purchase. That means both of them will encourage you to spend just as much as your debt to income ratios will allow.

Spending less may not buy you the house of your dreams, but it will allow you to live a less stressful life. And it will help you build equity in a house that you can sell later, when you're in a better position to "move up."

Today the housing market is being flooded with repossessed homes. Lenders can't keep homes in inventory for too long, so prices will be dropping monthly This is good news for you if you're a careful and smart shopper and can wait just a bit to buy. Perhaps that wedding should be postponed for 6 months or a year...

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