America's housing crisis is the result of classist credit guidelines

We spent a decade recovering from financial calamities (not of our making). To secure a better future, we avoided debt no matter what. This meant no A/C during sweltering 11 month summers and eating mostly plain rice (or nothing when it ran out).

Things improved a couple of years back. We are debt free and we have saved up 20% toward a home (to avoid PIP). However, no lenders will work with us - because the outcome of the most debt-free-living possible is a zero credit score.

They were way too lax with lending to marginal applicants and that caused the 2008 collapse. I’m sure the real estate industry would love to go back to dodgy loans to those who cannot pay them back because they make more profit that way. I believe there should be stricter credit requirements, coupled with higher taxes on secondary residences and investment real estate. It’s predatory lending otherwise.