Boston Mayor Tom Menino’s ambitious plan to build 30,000 more units of housing by 2020 should be commended.

With housing prices rapidly increasing because of a supply shortage amidst continued demand, the news should be taken as a vote of confidence for the real estate market.

Menino seemed to be latching on to a report issued four months earlier by The Boston Foundation, which estimated that Greater Boston developers may need to double or even triple annual housing production to meet demand through 2020.

The report also highlighted the fact that buyers are expected to seek smaller, more transit-oriented developments, as Baby Boomers seek to downsize and new buyers look for more affordable housing that suits their smaller households.

Menino last week also hailed signs of progress in the city’s commercial and residential real estate sectors, saying he anticipates the city will triple last year’s total of $1.6 billion in new development. He also highlighted the expected commencement of work on the old Filene’s site in Downtown Crossing later this spring; redevelopment plans afoot for the Bronstein Center in South Boston waterfront; and the anticipated opening of a Wegman’s supermarket in the Fenway.

But housing is key to all of these plans, especially for a growing city like Boston.