Are you factoring in the opportunity cost of the wasted (poor optimized) space? Of all the extra fuel people have to burn to get around said wasted space? What about the long term environmental impacts? What is the value of a person’s life (time) and what value do we put on the time that is taken from us because of wasteful sprawl?

Wasting land is only cheaper because the real costs get put on the rest of society and future generations.