As every new housing development is proposed, we are told that it should be approved because more affordable housing is needed. If the supply of homes and land is limited, prices will rise and younger people will not be able to afford homes.

This is historically true. But historically, we have lived in an unsustainable way. Water, energy, land, the environment, civilization itself are unsustainable under unlimited growth.  We should think in terms of a sustainable world.

In a sustainable world, every young person, on average, inherits half of what their parents have. If the price of homes and land goes up, so does the value of their inheritance. When a couple marries, they have an inheritance equal to their parents' home. This makes it clear that the "burden" of higher prices belongs to children in larger families. It's no disadvantage to the children of small families.

To build more and degrade the quality of the environment to accommodate population growth is rewarding unsustainable behavior and penalizing responsible parenting.

Brent Meeker, Camarillo

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