[Verse 1] After the war in forty-eight, the dream was taking hold Houses rising, families buying, stories being told Home equity building wealth for middle-class families Every payment, more ownership, climbing up with ease [Chorus] Home equity, wealth machinery Building up the middle class with property Zoning rules control the land supply When houses can't be built, the prices fly so high Credit flows in cycles round What goes up must come back down [Verse 2] Zoning laws decide what's built and where new homes can go Single-family neighborhoods, apartments answered no Land supply gets squeezed so tight, elastic like a band When demand keeps growing fast but rules restrict the land [Chorus] Home equity, wealth machinery Building up the middle class with property Zoning rules control the land supply When houses can't be built, the prices fly so high Credit flows in cycles round What goes up must come back down [Verse 3] Banks were lending, people spending, leverage on the rise Easy credit, don't forget it, blinded many eyes Two thousand eight, the bubble breaks, foreclosures everywhere Working families lost their homes, the wealthy kept their share [Bridge] Generation to generation Wealth transfers through the nation But the gaps between the races Show in different starting places Grandpa's house becomes your down payment History shapes each family's placement [Chorus] Home equity, wealth machinery Building up the middle class with property Zoning rules control the land supply When houses can't be built, the prices fly so high Credit flows in cycles round What goes up must come back down [Outro] From prosperity to inequality The housing market tells the story Of who gets wealth and who gets left behind In America's economic design
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