Two main factors:
-Wife left the work force (we just had a kid). We are living as cheaply as possible and it still doesn't cut it.
Bills. Roughly: 18k in student loans, 6k in hospital bills (1st kid), and 5k in a new AC/Heat system. Just tired of bills. Having
Nice. How long ago was it/what did it run a month?
Gotcha, have you looked at the rent prices for the type/size of home you want to rent? In my experience it has always been much cheaper to buy than rent. Ex. my wife and I rented a 1 bedroom apartment in Oakwood while we were in nursing school and working at Wal-mart. Even with a 20% discount for being on the 3rd floor (no elevator) and it being a new complex that they needed to fill, our rent was $750/month in 2010-2011. We graduated and got nursing jobs right about the time our lease was up, stayed with my parents for a few months while we found a house, and bought our first house in mid 2012. The 30 year fixed mortgage was only $500/month (plus electricity, trash, etc) for a 3 bed/2 bath home.
A friend at work has been looking for a room to rent while she's in school and folks are asking $500-1000 monthly rent for a bedroom and a bathroom. Her current place is a 3/2 house shared with 2 friends for $1500 monthly. Renting/leasing may not save you anything is my point. On a side note is your wife planning on staying home permanently?