The problem is any online business involves competing with everyone on the Internet. Maybe the skills of fluent-in-American-English or leadership or persuasion or math or programming allow a few to make a decent income selling that unique thing. But any skill that can be mastered is going to have a flood of people learning it from all around world, reducing it's price online.
Being a contract programmer is dating. Are you a super star with great skills and great personality? Fantastic, you can do equivalent of $550/h and still work 30-40 hour weeks ( translation: you are super hot, super fit and rich - you get to play with anyone you want ). Are you just OK? Well, start taking $30/h jobs that give you same 30-40 hours but live in a place where you can buy a house for $40k.
If you want to take the position that people can just move someplace cheaper, the way to do that without being a jerk is to help facilitate that in some way instead of turning a blind eye to the reality that expensive places have jobs, cheap places tend to lack them and the housing crisis is very much real. It isn't a made up complaint.
I moved someplace cheaper to get off the street. I did that in part by developing an online income under very challenging circumstances. I was able to make the move shortly after paying off my student loan.
On the one hand, we need more affordable housing. On the other, I see a lot of potential for reducing our current problems by providing more support for developing portable, flexible income via the internet.
What I did is not easy to arrange. It took me several years and I am certainly not in the lap of luxury yet.
I do get frustrated when people act like there is no housing crisis, there is plenty of cheap housing. Yeah, sure but it mostly isn't near employment centers. If you don't have an income, you can't afford housing, no matter how cheap it is.
The way to promote that idea without being a butt about it is to provide support for people to develop an online income instead of acting like they are just stupid or lazy that their life isn't working.