Bingo. I try to keep my urban-planning nerdery out of Hacker News, but zoning is the big reason why prices are so high. I mean, there's zoning everywhere, but

Bingo. I try to keep my urban-planning nerdery out of Hacker News, but zoning is the big reason why prices are so high. I mean, there's zoning everywhere, but when you throw in the Bay and the mountains, there's just too little land to start with. When there's unmet demand due to artificially reduced supply, prices can go up very rapidly.