So sorry if you thought this post was about the title. It's more a question, and how to achieve such a thing.
I grew up on about over an acre of land. We had an orchard in the back of our yard, apples mostly. I yearn for the days of my youth. I make a good living, by most standards, I'm above average. So why can I not buy a house like in my youth? The divide seems so very large. By most measures I was in poverty in my youth. Yet I cannot even afford that lifestyle. Why is that? Why is housing so damn expensive?
This is a huge question with more than one answer, but it's basically because wages haven't kept up with housing inflation since the 1970s. You could buy a house on a single-income job in your parents heyday, but now that same house is barely affordable for two people. It's the result of unchecked capitalism.