There are a few ways to be an asset. On credit, via a loan, installments, etc. It doesn’t matter what kind of asset. Real property is just one type of asset.
Unless you buy it “outright,” you can in many cases be at risk for losing the asset. This particularly applies to when the lender has the asset as “collateral” (look it up) for the loan. In such a case, the lender need not sue you for money, they can simply repossess the asset. Liability is the loan, not the asset. They are not only two different things, they are actually opposite. Why are you having such a difficult time with these concepts? They’re not complicated.