"there are more houses in my area, therefore there are more houses everywhere" is illogical. i wish it were true in the seattle area. also, there will always be more houses today than 50 years ago in a society with an above zero birth rate.

"there are more houses in my area, therefore there are more houses everywhere"

Nice strawman, I never said that.

I'm talking about localized population trends, such as in parts of Appalachia. I've seen it even in my own lifetime with houses replacing what used to be fields.

The Seattle area is not rural, so I would not expect you to notice farmland converting into developments.