I think that having material possesions that are within your means and having some savings is the best way to go.
I wouldn't want to have really nice stuff that I owed tons of money on, and have no money in the bank. I'd rather have the nicest stuff I could afford within my means, balanced with money in the bank.
I think the problem with younger people today is that they think that their first house should be liked the one they lived in with Mom and Dad, forgetting that Mom and Dad worked all their lives and worked up to that house...it wasn't the first one they ever bought.
My DH is a realtor and is always amazed at the number of young couples who think their first home should be a 4 bedroom 2 1/2 bath colonial, they have $30,000 worth of consumer credit debt, they are driving $40,000 cars, and can't understand why no one will give them a mortgage for the big house that they can't afford!