I ended up buying, but in a low cost of living area. In spite of the high wages possible equity it still seems risky/unfeasible to enter Seattle's housing mark

I ended up buying, but in a low cost of living area. In spite of the high wages possible equity it still seems risky/unfeasible to enter Seattle's housing market right now. First I would have to get lucky that a 400k house/condo would appear on the market. Then I would have to come up with 40k for small down payment on the cheapest house/condo in the metro area. Assuming I wasn't outbid by a developer or someone with more money than myself, I'd then have a nearly 2k a month mortgage - in addition to any maintenance/repair costs we might(will) incur. If I or my wife lost either of our jobs that would be a stretch, and we have pretty good jobs. Our family is all 2500 miles back east. Too much to lose. Maybe someday.