That's because you prioritized spending your money gallivanting around Africa. You could be the owner of a fixed up fixer upper outside Buffalo or Cleveland if that was what your priorities were.
No, I'm not American. I take it you haven't looked at the housing market in Vancouver or Toronto lately.
The same is happening even in small town now - a friend bought a place just before Covid for $480k, now it's worth $740k. This is a town of 10k people, in the middle of nowhere. Tiny lot, house is almost 100 years old.
