I’ll tell you that Thornberg article was dead-on. The builder has very little say over the final product now days. The NIMBYs have become so powerful (have experienced first hand in Carlsbad) that they consider high density to be low income. They think that high density will erode their property values. And don’t even get me started on rental units (only the scum of the earth would ever rent something). And we’re not talking high-rises here, we’re talking about townhomes. And then cities (who’s councils have elected officials) pander to the NIMBYs and only allow a limited number of higher density units to be built. The developer/builder is at the mercy of all of this. They basically have to sit back and be told what to build.
So in reality, it’s not up the builder or the marketplace. It’s purely up to the City.