Remember that high interest rates mean low housing prices because the maximum amount a family can afford to pay for their mortgage each month is the same whether the interest rates are 2% or 20%.
At 2%, a family that can afford $1,000/month for their mortgage payment can pay up to $270,000 for their house. At 20% interest, the same family can only spend $60,000 on a house. Because the value of a house is worth what purchasers are willing and able to pay, in a perfect economy, the same house that is worth $270k in a 2% interest rate environment is worth only $60k in a 20% interest rate environment. The reality is a big messier than that, but the early 1980s was still an excellent time to buy a house cheap if you had cash.