As financial stability becomes harder to achieve, many adults are reshuffling life’s traditional milestones. You know the saying: first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage. But today’s young adults are rewriting that script. For many, it’s more like: first comes love, then comes buying a house, then maybe marriage comes later — or maybe not at all. They say owning a home helps build long-term financial stability, with 71% of Canadians agreeing that homeownership is key to retirement. But in a housing market that’s becoming increasingly unaffordable, it’s no surprise that 78% of unmarried buyers under 30 are focused on saving for a mortgage, compared to 70% of those over 30. Plus, marital status doesn’t affect your ability to apply for a mortgage. Whether or not you’re married, you can apply for a mortgage under a joint application or a single — but if one person has a bad credit score, we recommend doing a single application. If you apply jointly, the lender will use the lower credit score, so going solo can sometimes make more sense.