Pay down the cards. In a situation like yours it is not close. The reason is what each dollar does to your monthly obligations. Extra down payment shrinks the loan only a little: illustratively, every $1,000 more down might trim a few dollars a month, so $10,000 could shave roughly $60, scaling with the interest rate. The same $10,000 aimed at credit cards can wipe out $150 to $300 a month in minimum payments, and that reduction comes straight out of your debt-to-income ratio, the number that governs how much home you qualify for. So our general rule: put less down and clear the revolving debt before doing the reverse. We would rather see a buyer go in with 3 percent down and the cards paid off than 5 percent down with those balances still riding, because the paydown does far more for both qualification and monthly affordability. One caveat: if your approved amount itself is the constraint, the analysis changes. Before you move money, have your lender run it both ways, cards paid versus extra down, so you decide from your actual payment and qualifying numbers instead of a rule of thumb.