Unlike the Soviet Union or China, we do not have internal passports and residence permits in the United States. Residents are free to move whereever they can re

Unlike the Soviet Union or China, we do not have internal passports and residence permits in the United States. Residents are free to move whereever they can rent or buy a place to live. Who do you think is charging those insane rents for a hole in the wall? The people who already live there. Nobody's forcing them to do that. You also presume that high density housing is inherently bad. Many people disagree with you. Manhattan and Hong Kong have the highest real estate prices on the planet because many, many people want to live there. The problem is that Silicon Valley cities want high density offices but not high density houses. They reap the tax benefits of having big business in their city, but foist the problem of housing all of their workers off onto other nearby cities.