Struggling to get a mortgage

System

Another Joe - really? Of course buying a house has a better and far safer return, but if it turns out that that isn't an option you don't want to be losing your deposit to house price inflation while you're waiting for a better credit rating. It may well be that credit rating is sufficient in a smaller timescale than you'd want for investing, but they always have the choice of continuing to rent&invest until ready or making a move on the property market, there isn't an overall hurry anymore when they're making returns one way or another, and buying a house is a speculative thing in itself - the value of houses can fall as well as rise with similar odds