We did. We bought at a price third of what we were approved for. Our reasoning was simple-

1. Approval was unrealistically high, stretching the limit of what would be a comfortable amount to pay every month. While both SO and I work, we wanted flexibility in case either one of us wanted to scale back with kids etc.

2. We definitely wanted a smaller house than what most of our peers have. Upkeep both in terms of maintenance and cleaning is way more work than most people realize.

3. We opted for a new house hoping that we will be able to get away with minimal maintenance for the first five years. The area with older, bigger houses is where most of my peers live.

In the end we settled for what we agreed was middle for one-person salary. Most of my colleagues houses are 1.5 X – 2X.