<prompt> Human: Hello PF,My wife 29 and I 28 are at an exciting time in our life together: looking to buy our first home! Wed like something that we can grow into and raise a family in, while avoiding going too big. We currently have no children, but are planning to try soon, and hope to have 2 kids. My wife will receive 10 weeks paid maternity, then plans to return to work full-time.Im looking for some advice and a sanity check that we are ready for a home.Location: Suffolk County, NY Long Island - high COLTake-home Income:5000moAssets:Cash:90kInvestments: 25kVehicles: 26kDownpayment Assistance from Parents25-40kDebt:Student loans: 7200 2.32 81moPersonal loan: 13,000 0 250mo parent, may be forgiven at some pointCurrent Monthy Costs:1650mo - Rent1600mo - Gas, Electric, Cable, Groceries, Entertainment, Cellphones, Auto Insurance, Health Insurance331mo - DebtCredit Scores: 740, 805Homes we are looking at are roughly 380-400k, with 7-10k in taxes. With 20 down, and 3.8 rates we are being quoted, I estimate this monthly payment to cost 2350. While this is nearly 12 our monthly take-home, we will still have 700 leftover each month. I expect our income to increase by 5kyear for at least the next 4 years. Our parents represent a large safety net, as they are FI and comfortably retired. We have excellent relationships with them, and they are eager for grandchildren.Specific Questions1. Are we crazy, or can we afford a home in the range stated above?2. Our realtor is a close, trusted friend of the family, any advice on dealing with them?3. What are the logistics of having 2 children in a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home? At what point do kids need their own bedrooms? My parents live 3 hours away, so having a guest room is nice, but I dont think we can afford a 4 bedroom home.4. How does the timeline work when buying a home? We are scheduled to start looking at homes with our realtor this weekend. Our lease ends in April 2016, and we dont mind 2 months max overlap on paying mortgage rent, to facilitate the transaction and allow us to slowly move in. Will the sellers agent ask when we are looking to move in? Do buyers ever come to an agreement 6 months out from the move-in date? Should we just place lowball offers in AugustSeptember, hoping to get a steal, and then get more aggressive in OctoberNovember?5. What are some things that you wish youd known before buying your first home, even if it wouldnt have changed your decision?Thanks in advance for all of your advice!EDIT 1: THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR INPUT! Your feedback has been HUGELY helpful for us!Assistant: Personally 400k home is way to big for 90k income. That is almost 12 of your take home. Add insurance taxes and possible maintenance and repair bills. That extra 700 will fly out of the window very fast. Look for 200-250 range. Human: Thank you for your input. I partially agree with you, so let me address some of your points.I expect our 90k income to increase steadily over the next few years. We can reasonably expect a 5k increase per year for the foreseeable future. Yes, it is a bit of a stretch now, but I believe it is a great time for us to stretch financially. Having large cash and family safety nets also gives us peace of mind.Insurancetaxes are included in the 2350 monthly payment.Repair bills - we will have 37k in cash after closing, which should cover anything major.There arent 200-250 homes in our area. Check out home prices in Nesconset, NY! 350 is really the lower end for a 3br home.  <response>: A couple of things:You may not even qualify for a mortgage at your income. Im not a mortgage expert but you will probably be pushing up against the upper debt-to-income ratio limits. We can reasonably expect a 5k increase per year for the foreseeable future.Our parents represent a large safety netI get where you a coming from. This house is a stretch for you but you have some safety nets in place to mitigate the risk. However, if one of these safety nets was to fail you could be in a world of hurt. Bad stuff happens. If you stretch yourself financially it can make a bad situation much much worse. That is why most people recommend against relying on these kinds of safety nets and assumptions. Yes, you need to take some risks in life but think about the worst case scenario and what it would do to your wife and kids. Is it worth it?There arent 200-250 homes in our area. You are not entitled to own a home in your area. If you cant afford a house in your area then move or rent. I think a lot of people struggle with this in the USA. People often feel like they are entitled to home ownership in area that they consider home. Unfortunately, this is not true and often leads to people making poor financial decisions. 