<prompt> Human: My wife and I are looking to purchase a new home in Austin, Texas and are wondering what we can afford? Is it responsible for us to begin purchasing property given our financial situation?- We have been together for the last five years and dont plan to to have a family for a while she is 25, Im 28. Nevertheless, I dont want to move anytime soon so something in a decent neighborhood that will hold its value and is maintainable is what we are looking for 1500-2k sqfeet.- We currently have zero consumer debt, zero credit card debt, and 20k combined student loan debt. Our combined monthly expenses are currently 2500month including housing.- We have 80,000 in the bank to be used as a down payment. Besides that we have a 20k emergency fund and 40k in investments. Our cars are paid off. - Our pretax household income is 140,000year. Texas has no income tax.  <response>: Lots of good financial advice here, so Ill answer a different way. Make sure you will enjoy living there. A house you have to move out of because you dont like the neighborhood is a bad financial deal.Research the neighborhood. Knock on your future neighbors door and say hi. You will be living next to these folks for a long time, so make sure you get along. It doesnt take long to figure out if you are reasonably compatible. Just basic stuff like house maintenance, parking vehicles where they dont bother you, barking dogs and the like.The best houses I ever owned were defined by my neighbors, not the financial aspects of the deal. 