My first house price was 10X my income at the time. That little cracker box was 10X! It was obscene at the time and my dad said “Son, buying that house was the stupidest thing you’ve ever done”! (true story). I decided to buy in one of the most expensive towns in the USA at the time — odd way for a new buyer to start. But it was as modest a home as you could imagine. But I got my feet in the door that way.
How did I do it? I sacrificed for five years by living out of suitcase in a field service engineering job where I could save 80% of my income because I was on a 100% expense account. Company paid for my car, travel, food, and housing. It was fun and I got to see a lot of the world, but obviously not for everyone. There were big sacrifices in not having a true home, girlfriend, etc for that long.