October 27, 2025· 46 min

Why It's Still So Expensive to Build Homes in America

Brian Potter

Orality

Model

50%

Speaker Breakdown

HostJoe Weisenthal(1,508 words)

M:28%

HostTracy Alloway(2,221 words)

M:93%

GuestBrian Potter(5,472 words)

M:29%

Oral Indicators

Agonistic52%

literally, completely, basically

Engagement65%

you, our, your

Memory Aids100%

listen, now, right

Repetition100%

like (291x), know (115x), it's (88x)

Parallelism72%

And I'm Joe Weisenthal...., And I I may have mentioned on ..., But, yes, it was very funny....

Sound Patterns56%

61 question(s), alliteration: "markets move", alliteration: "barclays brief"

Formulaic Phrases4%

you know what, i mean

Literate Indicators

Hedging9%

may, probably, maybe

Passive Voice2%

be enforced, be customized, is often

Abstract Nouns17%

investment, recommendation, business

Subordination6%

because, however, nonetheless

Sentence Length39%

Avg: 14.8 words/sentence

Word Complexity49%

investment, analyze, anticipate

Academic Markers0%

Impersonal Style35%

706 personal pronouns found

Descriptive Style87%

literally, completely, apply

Description

Everyone has an opinion on why housing is so expensive in America -- and to be fair, there are probably a lot of reasons for it. But one simple factor is that homes are expensive to build. Unlike many other physical objects, they haven't gotten cheaper over time. So why is this? And why haven't we found a way to bring down the cost curve by building modular housing in factories or on assembly lines? On this episode, we speak with Brian Potter the author of the new book The Origins of Efficiency. Potter also worked at a modular homes startup that failed, and is also the author of the excellent Construction Physics newsletter. So we talk about what he's learned about housing, as well as broader questions about how operational efficiency is achieved over time across a range of industries. Read more: Austin, Salt Lake City Top Global List of Most Affordable Cities Affordable Housing Left Vulnerable After Trump Fires Building Inspectors Only Bloomberg - Business News, Stock Markets, Finance, Breaking & World News subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox each week, plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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