Or ya know, Austria for example, a country with a better standard of living, overall happiness, and life expectancy than the US

There are many modern, developed, market economy countries where the government enacts controls to ensure access to affordable housing. The US is somewhat of an outlier in that regard.

It's the backbone of American society too, for land and housing.

The colonists certainly didn't pay the natives for their land, and the revolutionaries sure didn't pay Britain to take ownership

When land isn't being used effectively, it's moved to another owner with limited to no compensation