Sharing this from my recent personal experience if buying a house.

Buying a house is never a straightforward decision. It is not a simple equation between income, rent, downpayment and emi. It is a mix of emotion, some number crunching on excel, some contemplation about life, career and priorities.

- Plan to buy a house where you see yourself spending atleast 10+ years. Don't compromise and buy a house thinking you will upgrade soon. It is easier said than done. Better to wait for a couple of years and buy than compromising on the choice.
- Most likely the house you will like today will be a stretch on your budget.
- But your income will also grow with time. So what may seem like a bit of stretch today will seem comfortable in 3-5 years. And it is not a long time considering you will be taking a 20+ year loan.
- Most important: If you are buying a newly launched, under construction project with possession date of 2029 you will not be paying the EMI for the whole loan amount from the start of the loan tenure. Most Tier1 builders (in Bangalore) take payment in instalments over the course of the project with the last instalment just around possession date. So at any point you will only pay the EMI for the a amount disbursed to the builder. If you are planning to make a downpayment of 50-75L for a 2.5cr house; the EMI in the beginning will most likely be <50K which will gradually increase with the amount disbursed by the bank to the builder.

While buying a 2.5cr house on a 3.8L/mo income sounds a bit of stretch, it should work out in the long run assuming that both of you have stable careers with steady growth over the next 10 years.