A two-sector model of land and upzoning

When we upzone land from single-family zoning to apartment zoning, we change the allocation of a city’s fixed stock of land. Upzoning makes apartment-zoned land more abundant and hence cheaper, while single-family-zoned land becomes scarcer and more expensive. Because land is an input into the production of housing, upzoning reduces the cost of building apartments, and hence is a key policy option…