Zillow Hell

I'm Gonna Live In A Van Down By The River...

If I could say just one thing to my younger self as I was on the eve of graduating college, I'd take a hot iron and brand "DON'T FUCK UP YOUR CREDIT RATING" on my chest in reverse letters so I'd see it in the mirror every morning...

What brought that on?  Looking for houses, and having very little luck.

I go to the Zillow website, and enter all my info, including how much house I can afford, and all the other particulars.

I get this map back.  The red dots are possible homes I could manage on my credit/budget.

Now, this map is the area of Houston (inside the big green box) that I consider liveable, in terms of commute time downtown, amenities, crime rate, and so on.

See a bit of a problem??