When we bought our home, we were lucky to be able to buy way below what we were approved for, at a cost comfortably affordable even if we went from a dual to single income household.
Our home has plenty of space to grow into, in a neighbourhood we love. It's not perfect, but it's great.
Could we have bought a better home in an even better neighbourhood for double or triple the cost? Yes, technically we could afford it and were approved for it. But that would not be a sound financial choice.