I looked for 2 years and finally found the perfect place. If your in australia the market should calm down so will be easier to find a place with less competition. Keep in mind renovations can cost more than you would expect. You can use building estimate calculators to give you an idea on the costs. I decided not building my house until later in life, stressful to build and get approvals even though my job is designing houses and apartments ;) councils have become the biggest headache for most trying to build. Some councils are a joke. Over a year sometimes to give approvals now. Its amusing that some planners in council cannot read a plan to save their life.