That $500,000 rambler

It shouldn't come as news to anyone that home prices in the Seattle region have soared.

Theo Eicher, founding director of the University of Washington's Economic Policy Research Center, offers a thoughtful analysis of how zoning laws and other land-use regulations have driven home prices up by an estimated $200,000.

Illuminating, but nothing that ought to spur changes in at least one key land-use regulation, the state's Growth Management Act.

Residents in the Puget Sound region are getting a tremendous return on their investment. Restrictions on development have preserved the character and environmental appeal of our area.

Policies sometimes work at cross-purposes. Yes, state and local growth-management laws restrict where homes can be built, affecting supply that contributes to rising prices.

But the alternative would be no less expensive and a whole lot uglier.

Allowing housing communities to march up the sides of the Cascades would require a greater public investment. Rationing scarce public resources such as water and providing public infrastructure such as sewers would replace grumbling over the high cost of a Magnolia rambler.

Applied in the context of the years-old regional debate over growth, the UW study is a well-formulated footnote. It spells out the trade-offs that most residents have already accepted.

Various reasons go into the rising cost of a home, from demographics to income levels. Land supply in our region is hindered not simply by laws, but also by our mountain ranges and lakes.

Ultimately, home prices reflect our willingness to pay for the things we value most. It is a good guess that the million and a half newcomers expected to move here in coming decades are willing to strike that same bargain.

The upside to urban planning and its accompanying land-use rules is clean air, preserved open spaces, parks and a greener quality of life here than in most other cities — L.A., anyone? The downside is that nothing is free. We must pay for what we value.