It's not an open or competitive market. It's a fractured, locality-heavy market that's actually operated more like a cartel in many (especially small to mid si

It's not an open or competitive market. It's a fractured, locality-heavy market that's actually operated more like a cartel in many (especially small to mid size) areas. You are never free to just buy a building and do what you want with it - the City has to vote, approve use, permits, etc. All of which conspire against a 'free' market in any sense. As an example, of the ~30 or so large scale commercial buildings in my local downtown, there's a total of 3-4 owners. You only know this if you know the lawyers who put together the property deals, as each is hidden behind it's own management company and rented through one of 2 commercial real estate management firms (conveniently owned by the same 3 people). There is no 'rush in to build', as there is no land at all remaining in the city to build new on - any construction requires demolition first. Again, permits, historic district permits, etc. all conspire against the newcomer.