I am also familiar with the late start of repayment on the real estate market in England before 2009. People bought their first small house, received a 120% mortgage, lived there for a few years without repaying, and then sold it at a profit. Then they climbed the "ladder" a bit higher and bought another house. A smaller mortgage and the same game one or two more times, until they lived in their dream home. Then repayment began. Of course, this only works in a market with rising property prices. The financial crisis from autumn 2008 hit England hard and threw the "property ladder climbers" back sharply. From a German perspective, one could say "there you see these speculators" and point to the losers. Meanwhile, the winners among private households are left unmentioned; these existed in large numbers as well. Whether one should do it that way – I have my doubts, but it is certainly a different approach.