Housing Bubble: Land Value Free Lunch Part 2

Part 2. Wendell Fitzgerald with Peter Melton examine the little known fact that all land value is created by society as a whole, not individual landowners, and that private ownership and collection of this community created value constitutes an unearned free gift to landowners at the expense of all society and a special injustice to all non-landowners, i.e. renters, and now, more than ever, the homeless. A shift of property taxes from a tax on improvements and land value to a tax on land value only as suggested by the 19th century economist, Henry George, would begin to solve this most fundamental of flaws in so-called capitalist/free market theory and practice. Wendell is a long time member of the Henry George School of San Francisco. HenryGeorgeSF.org. Produced by DanShaw.com.

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[NearAbbeyRoad]

@hawkpork

Implementing Land Value Tax does not mean public ownership of land. Well, apart from the USA, all land in western countries is ultimately owned by the state anyhow. You have "title" to the land.

The great thing about LVT is that is does not affect existing business behaviour and ownership.

[NearAbbeyRoad]

@hawkpork

It has been implemented with great success around the world. Pittsburgh used LVT to to generate the city. Hong Kong use it and what a success.

[ourearthhome]

Sure the demand for money is the same as the demand for goods and land but merely because money will buy and income from some asset does not exempt the transactions from every possible ethical and moral consideration or else chattel slavery would have to be brought back because of the wrong done to money. For this reason it is entirely appropriate to take notice that income from land is entirely unearned and therefore the proper object of taxation especially when compared to taxation of income

[magrathean0]

Land rent for a georgist is the price paid for land ONLY. Imagine a site with a house on it - now take the house and all improvements away - there would still be a price for the just the empty site and that price is what an individual is prepared to pay for the value the surrounding community adds to simply BEING at the site.

[hawkpork]

hi

what is "land rent" ? is it like council rates?

it would seem logical that all property value and profit thereof, is at least partially determined by "community created value"

are these ppl libertarians?

[magrathean0]

Hawpork, Henry George's ideas are not "the socialisation of land ownership". It is important to understand that is ONLY the land rent that is socialised, not the land itself. Land would still have private owners who can trade the land, but the collection of the land rent by the community means they cannot gain passively by pocketing community created value.

[hawkpork]

i'm not standing in the way. i would support socialisation of land ownership. it sounds like a great idea.

"already been done in pennsylvania" ? what no private land ownership in penns?

total socialisation of all land? call me a sceptic but i'll believe it when i see it.

[jbryant13]

Those who say it can't be done should get out of the way of those that are DOING it.

As he stated - this has already been done in Pennsylvania.

[hawkpork]

sounds fuckin brilliant..but impossible to implement.