I think the meaning was that most Americans resent that they are basically forced into a contract in order to get the plan and device they want. I would rather bring my own device, but the only carrier available to me (until recently) was Verizon, and they won't let me do that. So I (at one time) signed a contract, but I would have been happier to simply pay for the device of my choice and paid for service month-to-month.
To extend this to your analogy, I was forced to take out a mortgage despite having the cash to buy the whole house outright because the person selling the house wouldn't take cash.
To extend this to your analogy, I was forced to take out a mortgage despite having the cash to buy the whole house outright because the person selling the house wouldn't take cash.