Fixer upper. You're always going to need to do work to make a house "yours". It's just a matter of how much, not "if".
We bought a house well within our price comfort zone, and I'm so damn glad we did. As it turns out, a year and a half later my job was eliminated at Kodak. My wife works, and we were able to survive quite comfortably on quite a bit less than we were used to.
Knowing now that we can do it one one salary is a giant relief, and makes life much less stressful. But that's just me. I'm not a big fan of financial stress. We came through that trial with our saving still intact.
We still live in a great neighborhood with a great school district, and in 3 years of work and a desirable location, our house has appreciated 35%.
I also know people who have split the difference. They bought something in between pristine and a semi-fixerupper very close to our house, and have been able to make their house look phenominal in a very short period of time. Maybe that's what you're best bet is.