New or old?

We've been pre-approved.  That's the good news.  The sort of good news is our mortgage broker is practical, and she didn't pre-approve us for the total amount the bank will likely approve us for.  She pre-approved us for what we can afford our monthly mortgage payment to be.  Why is that sort of good news?  Because it is the harsh reality of what we already knew.  We can't afford the nice homes in the older neighborhood walking distance to the really great French immersion school and to CU.  We can, however, afford a brand new home about a mile from the other really great French immersion school and a five minute drive from CU.  We can also afford a moderately nice home in the older neighborhood, probably one that has had some updates, but will still need a fair amount of work in the next 10 years or so.  Now we get our place on the market and hope it sells high.