So, you're saying that when interest rates first dropped mega-low, people could afford a house?
But... that's what caused the current problem, some say. Rates too low, for a decade, causing a housing bubble. It sounds to me like what you recall, was an aberration.
EDIT: Don't get me wrong. I think the bar to home ownership should be lower. But at the same time, I think it hasn't been low, for 50+ years.
In 1995, the average income in the Netherlands was €33000, and an average house (not any house, anecdotally my parents bought it for less) could be bought for €93750 at an interest rate of 7.71%.
But... that's what caused the current problem, some say. Rates too low, for a decade, causing a housing bubble. It sounds to me like what you recall, was an aberration.
EDIT: Don't get me wrong. I think the bar to home ownership should be lower. But at the same time, I think it hasn't been low, for 50+ years.