I convince myself that I'm being too picky and that I need to find a way to be happy with a queasy cube of blue stucco with six-foot ceilings and an electric stove, in a neighborhood with no on-street parking.

Absolutely not, IMO. It is the place you're going to live for a number of years. You might never find 'perfect,' but you shouldn't settle for something that will make you flat-out unhappy.