At the beginning of 2005, robert toll, ceo of toll brothers, argued that the united states was not experiencing a housing bubble. instead, he argued that higher house prices reflected restrictions imposed by local governments on building new houses. he argued that the restrictions resulted from "nimby"-"not in my back yard"-politics. many existing homeowners are reluctant to see nearby farms and undeveloped land turned into new housing developments. as a result, according to toll, "towns don't want anything built." source: shawn tully, "toll brothers: the new king of the real estate boom, " fortune, april 5, 2005. why would the factors mentioned by robert toll cause housing prices to rise?
a) it would keep the supply of housing from increasing.
b) it would cause the supply of housing to increase.
c) it would create opportunities for new home buyers.
d) it would keep the demand for housing from increasing.
it would be possible to decide whether these factors or a bubble was the cause of rising housing prices by looking at the number of new home units sold. if the number of new home units sold rose noticeably over time, then the evidence supports the bubble argument.