Absolutely, but pre covid, housing limitations hadn't really spiked prices post 2008. Rental rates were pretty stagnant. There are highs, but the prolonged historically low interest rates already lead to a runaway price increase especially when coupled with people showing up with remote work with salaries that are unheard of locally. Rhode Island had vacancy issues, but it was more manageable when examining the population that actually works in Rhode Island or somewhat locally pre covid. The city was never conceptualized to support random pockets of West coast workers or a disproportionate swath of Boston and thousands from NYC and it has never had the economy to do so either. So these issues aren't mutually exclusive, but covid was undeniably the major force acting on it (interest rates + remote work) making a situation no one could predict. It's not like RI is unique given that every mid sized city in the country experienced a crunch when demographically pushed to their limits. I had friends with escalation clauses buying homes in rural midwestern towns on cash offers. So building is going to help us get out of this, but as long as remote workers with insane salaries keep piling into this state it isn't going to fix the problem that covid primarily created (this has been documented in academia). Even the most resilient and building friendly states (obv not this one) aren't prepared to double their population overnight, especially when lockdowns and supply chain shutdowns halted construction projects during the peak.

It's like if you cooked for 10 people, but has 15 RSVP- you were always going to be stretched. But then 50 show up and complain that you only had the oversight to cook for 10, knowing 15 would come, but lacking any introspection about their own completely unexpected presence.