I agree the land issue (rent seeking really) is an important factor in explaining stagnation (because of the opportunity cost of tying up dead capital into illi

I agree the land issue (rent seeking really) is an important factor in explaining stagnation (because of the opportunity cost of tying up dead capital into illiquid assets) but I suspect it too is a side affect. The majority of constraints on land use appear to be artificial such as corruption/NIMBYism/regulatory. Why though, have those constraints come into existence? They didn't always exist. In my country getting official approval from the government in order to construct a house only came in the 80s, long after one might make complaint about factories belching smoke in the wrong area and other such externalities.