Paying For Dirt: Where Have Home Values Detached From Construction Costs?

Published: 2017 | Issi Romem | BuildZoom

Abstract

The high cost of housing in expensive coastal metros is not driven by construction costs. It is driven by the high cost of land which, in turn, reflects a scarcity of zoned units, not a scarcity of land per se. The scarcity of zoned units afflicts the expensive coastal metros in their entirety but, even within more affordable metro areas, sought-after districts suffer from such scarcity.