I had two Budgies in the last 3 years. The first passed away from some sort of kidney problems at the vets, and the second we ended up passing along to my MIL when my FIL died as she needed a companion and couldn't cope with a dog.
It worked out perfectly - we still see him regularly and he's actually getting much more attention now as she doesn't work, unlike us. All the neighbours pop in and chat away to him all day long.
I have to say though that having birds is soooo different than you think it's gonna be. Nobody ever tells you how LOUD they are!
I'd love a larger parrot, and for a while was considering moving on to larger ones once our guy had passed on to his aviary in the sky, but then I realised how much louder big birds are, and also how much attention they need.
My DH was finding the budgies noises to be almost driving him to insanity when he was trying to watch TV - who knew he had ears like a dog? I could tune it out, but he was wincing every time there was a particularly shrill cry.
Another thing that put me off is how long they live. Who wants to outlive their pet? And African Greys can become very possessive. I don't want that from my DH, let alone a pet!
So fair play to all you guys who have opened their homes to larger parrots. I am full of admiration - it's not easy!