Do you actually have any evidence this is true in "most" markets? It seems like only in a few markets around highly-desirable cities is this true. Farms don't sound like they're going to be representative of the types of housing that most people are looking for.
I'm 45 minutes south of Seattle and I purchased a large house with a backyard, recent-ish construction, no contingencies waived, for less than what a 500sqft loft is going for in Seattle.
Farms are also what investors are looking for, at least the types of farms this person seems to be talking about. "Farm" the land for 10-20 years, and then put in a development as the city grows out. These investors are betting that the land will be worth a lot more in a few years.
I put farm in quotes because they are intentionally mining the land of all long term fertility - not a problem as it won't be farmed in a few years anyway, but if you intended to farm for more than 10 years then proper care for the land will ensure better profits of the wrong run.
This explains why a half assed, poorly maintained, corn crop would randomly pop up in a lot between commercial buildings, across from where I used to live.
I live in a rural area (relatively speaking - town of about 1000 people) - around me if you don't show up to look at a house, ready to buy, and with no contingencies - you are not going to get a house. I know many folks near me who have listed their house, had 40 people show up the first day (open house) and sold it the next day, for cash, for 20% over the asking price - around me, those stories are very common.
I study the RE market in several places that I am connected to every day - I watch houses come on the market, and are under deposit within days. I feel really bad for young people looking to buy their first place (including my kids) - they can't pay cash, and they are on a budget - they have almost zero real options other than to continue to rent and wait for a RE crash. IMO, it's coming, but who knows when.
Home prices around where I am (LCOL area in MI) are creeping up, but not to the absurd degree they are in actually desirable places to live. That said, anywhere that's decent to live is getting slammed. For instance, sticking to MI, Grand Rapids and the Ann Arbor area are insane compared to where they were a few years ago.
The only reason there are any decently priced houses where I am is that a lot of them are over 100 years old and some of the school systems are so bad even our current asset bubble can't make families want to live there. (So no point in buying to rent out for twice the mortgage because no family is paying 2000/mo for a house in a school district with a math proficiency rate of 15%.)
Do you actually have any evidence this is true in "most" markets? It seems like only in a few markets around highly-desirable cities is this true. Farms don't sound like they're going to be representative of the types of housing that most people are looking for.
I'm 45 minutes south of Seattle and I purchased a large house with a backyard, recent-ish construction, no contingencies waived, for less than what a 500sqft loft is going for in Seattle.