House Purchase Advice

[Apoc]

i have no car payment, i'm fairly frugal, i make good money, and i've always been a saver, but i couldn't afford anything more than a condo. even on our two incomes plus a roomie, a house would be a stretch. fuck that noise.

You have to remember that you're looking to buy relatively close (if not considered in) a major city. Show me a time in history when a 27 y/o with dual income could afford a "house in the city" and I'll be surprised. Our parents bought houses in the 'burbs, their parents bought houses in the 'burbs and their parents before them were lucky to own anything. My parents didn't live in Springfield because they wanted to live in the 'burbs. I'm sure they would have preferred the same thing close to where they worked (downtown DC) but it's where they could afford a single family home... it's just the way it is. It doesn't matter if you're making good money because to afford a house where you want to live, you need to make money that people make after having a job for 20-30 years. That really hasn't ever changed, I think you just have unreasonable expectations about where you should be able to afford to live in the house you want.