[ravelfan]

While this is true of course, it is easy for knowledge workers to say this when we aren't the ones pounding in nails all day.

We speak as if the houses just build themselves and we just have to press these buttons in the right combination like software.

Everyone involved basically has better options than to build more housing so it should be no surprise we have a shortage.

[jeffbee]

Sure but it's a matter of turning some policy knobs, and we know where they are and how much to turn them. The policies that prevent us from building are favorable tax treatment of existing properties and financial penalties for building new ones, favorable treatment of professional labor and penalization of productive labor. The "better options" of which you speak are policy outcomes and we can change the rules.