Assignment #2
- The Importance of Real Estate
- Real estate is important for many reasons including its affect on economies, the many jobs it offers, and its uniqueness. Real estate has the power to boost the economy in good times and crush it in poor time, as the United States was shown in 2008 when the real estate "bubble" burst. The jobs that go along with real estate are endless and range from home builders to real estate consultants dealing properties for multi-million dollar high rise buildings. Every tract of real estate is unique, and because of that, it is very important to know the important aspects of real estate such as property rights and restrictions on ownership.
- Homes and Cars Point the Way for US
- In this article the author talks at first about how the housing market in the US is surprisingly high this year. Although there has been success with housing, the US economy has not had the break through that would be expected. Housing sales are at their peak since 2007, with the author noting that the sales number could be higher, but the demand is higher than the supply. Reasons for the improvement in housing are the low interest rates for loans and the overall sensitively to regulation from the Fed. Overall, the author concludes that though the housing market does affect the economy, the troubles in Europe are holding back the economy at the moment.
- Residential Real Estate and Its Importance of the Whole Economy
- Residential real estate is a large business in the United States, and this article goes into detail describing the many jobs associated with this sector. The author goes on to explain that even though the economy has been in recession since 2008, residential real estate has continued to be a tool to help boost the economy. Much of the boost that the government gains through real estate is from the property taxes. For this reason you see the Federal Reserve lower interest rates to try and entice home buyers to go out and buy real estate.
- Property Rights and Legal Descriptions
- Property rights and legal descriptions are essential tools when dealing with real estate. Property rights are not limited to the surface as they also include the air and mineral rights for real estate. Legal descriptions are the documents that affect title to real estate. An example of something to watch out for is when an owner withholds the mineral rights when selling real estate. Even though a person may own the surface, they are still at the mercy of the owner of the mineral rights. As shown in the articles below, property rights and legal descriptions are very important for both keeping your individual freedoms and also in making sure that your real estate is safe.
- Property Rights
- Author Armen A. Alchian talks about the details of property rights and the affects of having and not having property rights. His definition of property rights is, "A property right is the exclusive authority to determine how a resource is used, whether that resource is owned by government or by individuals." He goes on to say that something to watch out for is socialism and "commonly owned" resources. In these two instances, property rights are not given to the individual but to the government or no one at all. Alchian continues by telling of the complexity of property rights: how they can be very expensive to purchase and negotiate and how property rights are not absolute. Finally, the author ends with a statement on how property rights are most important because they preserve the rights of individuals.
- Legal Descriptions of Real Estate
- Legal Descriptions in the article are told to be used "to identify the property and its boundaries." There are 3 methods of using legal descriptions to determine property boundaries.
- Metes and Bounds Description uses landmarks or monuments to make angles to show property lines. This is the older way of forming property boundaries, where large objects such as boulders, trees, and rivers could be used to set property lines.
- Rectangular Survey System (Government Survey System) was developed by Congress in the 1700s to divide large tracts of land. The system uses a rectangular coordinate systems based off of lines called principal meridians and base lines. Principal meridians and base lines form rectangles that are divided into various units based on size. The names of those units are Townships, Quadrangles, and Sections.
- Land-and-Block System (Recorded Plat System) specifies land by lot number or letter and block. The block may be set up using either the metes and bounds approach or the rectangular survey system. This description would be seen when applying for home loans or when trying to purchase a particular tract of land.
- Private Restrictions on Ownership
- Private restrictions on ownership includes covenants, conditions, and restrictions. Examples of a few of the many restrictions that exist are shown in the articles below and include deed restrictions and mechanic's liens.
- Deed Restrictions and Covenants Regulate Land Use, Aesthetics
- Private Restrictions are usually described in one of three terms known as CC&Rs, which are covenants, conditions, and restrictions. One example the author gives is deed restrictions, in which an owner can make rules to place on the future use of their land or buildings. A deed restriction can be made to where the future owners have to abide by the rules put in place by the current owner. An example would be the land talked about in class that sits across from a church, where previous owners put in their deed restrictions that alcohol could not be sold on the land. As discussed both in class and in the article, the more common way of imposing restrictions today is through homeowners associations. The article goes into great detail about how the "master deed" can be formed to make subdivisions uniform and maintain property values for owners.
- Texas Roofer Jailed in Westmoreland County on 17 Theft Charges
- This article focuses on mechanic's liens, which are used to protect companies in the construction business who do not get paid. The roofing company in the article failed to pay its supplier almost $65,000, forcing the supplier to file mechanic's liens on the houses on which the supplies were used. The affect of these liens is that the owners of the houses now are liable for the costs when they have already paid the roofer. Essentially the owners could have to pay for the roof twice, or if they sell the house, the new owner would be responsible for the expense. Sadly I can attest that this is very common because my father is in the construction business and has had to deal with contractors who do not pay their bills. Many times a distributorship like the one my father runs has to just eat the bill because the cost of taking builders and contractors to court is more than what they are owed.
- Public Restrictions on Ownership
- Public restrictions on ownership include taxation, eminent domain, police power, and escheat. Below are two examples of how public restrictions can be controversial for a real estate owner, and make them feel as though they are without control of their own real estate.
- City Action May Restart Urgent Care Construction
- One of the many ways that there can be public restrictions on ownerships is through eminent domain. The use of eminent domain is defined in our textbook as, "a government can acquire property for a public use, even if the owner does not want to sell, as long as the owner receives just compensation." In this article the city of Columbus is forced to use eminent domain after a civil suit was issued from a neighboring mall. Due to a restrictive covenant from a previous owner, undeveloped land must be left for pedestrians and parking. The owners of the urgent care center claimed to have been misled about the restrictive covenant. They are currently suing the previous owner who sold them the land to recover some of the money lost because of the stalled project. This is a good example of why it is important to read all of the restrictions, covenants, and conditions that go a long with real estate before making a purchase. Also, this shows that even though the neighboring mall is correct, they can still lose out because of the power of eminent domain.
- Plano City Council Approves Measures to Spur Development
- Another example of public restrictions on ownership is zoning. In the article the city of Plano passed a controversial zoning change to try and bring business to the city. The zoning change is in the more affluent area of Plano. The city wants the area to be occupied by an office park and upscale restaurants; however, this upset the residents. The residents are not totally against the city's vision, but many believe that small businesses and fast food restaurants will move into the area instead of the more highly desired businesses. In my opinion this is one downside of living in the city and is a risk that one takes and must be aware of when buying real estate.
- Real estate is important for many reasons including its affect on economies, the many jobs it offers, and its uniqueness. Real estate has the power to boost the economy in good times and crush it in poor time, as the United States was shown in 2008 when the real estate "bubble" burst. The jobs that go along with real estate are endless and range from home builders to real estate consultants dealing properties for multi-million dollar high rise buildings. Every tract of real estate is unique, and because of that, it is very important to know the important aspects of real estate such as property rights and restrictions on ownership.
- Homes and Cars Point the Way for US
- In this article the author talks at first about how the housing market in the US is surprisingly high this year. Although there has been success with housing, the US economy has not had the break through that would be expected. Housing sales are at their peak since 2007, with the author noting that the sales number could be higher, but the demand is higher than the supply. Reasons for the improvement in housing are the low interest rates for loans and the overall sensitively to regulation from the Fed. Overall, the author concludes that though the housing market does affect the economy, the troubles in Europe are holding back the economy at the moment.
- Residential Real Estate and Its Importance of the Whole Economy
- Residential real estate is a large business in the United States, and this article goes into detail describing the many jobs associated with this sector. The author goes on to explain that even though the economy has been in recession since 2008, residential real estate has continued to be a tool to help boost the economy. Much of the boost that the government gains through real estate is from the property taxes. For this reason you see the Federal Reserve lower interest rates to try and entice home buyers to go out and buy real estate.
- Property rights and legal descriptions are essential tools when dealing with real estate. Property rights are not limited to the surface as they also include the air and mineral rights for real estate. Legal descriptions are the documents that affect title to real estate. An example of something to watch out for is when an owner withholds the mineral rights when selling real estate. Even though a person may own the surface, they are still at the mercy of the owner of the mineral rights. As shown in the articles below, property rights and legal descriptions are very important for both keeping your individual freedoms and also in making sure that your real estate is safe.
- Property Rights
- Author Armen A. Alchian talks about the details of property rights and the affects of having and not having property rights. His definition of property rights is, "A property right is the exclusive authority to determine how a resource is used, whether that resource is owned by government or by individuals." He goes on to say that something to watch out for is socialism and "commonly owned" resources. In these two instances, property rights are not given to the individual but to the government or no one at all. Alchian continues by telling of the complexity of property rights: how they can be very expensive to purchase and negotiate and how property rights are not absolute. Finally, the author ends with a statement on how property rights are most important because they preserve the rights of individuals.
- Legal Descriptions of Real Estate
- Legal Descriptions in the article are told to be used "to identify the property and its boundaries." There are 3 methods of using legal descriptions to determine property boundaries.
- Metes and Bounds Description uses landmarks or monuments to make angles to show property lines. This is the older way of forming property boundaries, where large objects such as boulders, trees, and rivers could be used to set property lines.
- Rectangular Survey System (Government Survey System) was developed by Congress in the 1700s to divide large tracts of land. The system uses a rectangular coordinate systems based off of lines called principal meridians and base lines. Principal meridians and base lines form rectangles that are divided into various units based on size. The names of those units are Townships, Quadrangles, and Sections.
- Land-and-Block System (Recorded Plat System) specifies land by lot number or letter and block. The block may be set up using either the metes and bounds approach or the rectangular survey system. This description would be seen when applying for home loans or when trying to purchase a particular tract of land.
- Private restrictions on ownership includes covenants, conditions, and restrictions. Examples of a few of the many restrictions that exist are shown in the articles below and include deed restrictions and mechanic's liens.
- Deed Restrictions and Covenants Regulate Land Use, Aesthetics
- Private Restrictions are usually described in one of three terms known as CC&Rs, which are covenants, conditions, and restrictions. One example the author gives is deed restrictions, in which an owner can make rules to place on the future use of their land or buildings. A deed restriction can be made to where the future owners have to abide by the rules put in place by the current owner. An example would be the land talked about in class that sits across from a church, where previous owners put in their deed restrictions that alcohol could not be sold on the land. As discussed both in class and in the article, the more common way of imposing restrictions today is through homeowners associations. The article goes into great detail about how the "master deed" can be formed to make subdivisions uniform and maintain property values for owners.
- Texas Roofer Jailed in Westmoreland County on 17 Theft Charges
- This article focuses on mechanic's liens, which are used to protect companies in the construction business who do not get paid. The roofing company in the article failed to pay its supplier almost $65,000, forcing the supplier to file mechanic's liens on the houses on which the supplies were used. The affect of these liens is that the owners of the houses now are liable for the costs when they have already paid the roofer. Essentially the owners could have to pay for the roof twice, or if they sell the house, the new owner would be responsible for the expense. Sadly I can attest that this is very common because my father is in the construction business and has had to deal with contractors who do not pay their bills. Many times a distributorship like the one my father runs has to just eat the bill because the cost of taking builders and contractors to court is more than what they are owed.
- Public restrictions on ownership include taxation, eminent domain, police power, and escheat. Below are two examples of how public restrictions can be controversial for a real estate owner, and make them feel as though they are without control of their own real estate.
- City Action May Restart Urgent Care Construction
- One of the many ways that there can be public restrictions on ownerships is through eminent domain. The use of eminent domain is defined in our textbook as, "a government can acquire property for a public use, even if the owner does not want to sell, as long as the owner receives just compensation." In this article the city of Columbus is forced to use eminent domain after a civil suit was issued from a neighboring mall. Due to a restrictive covenant from a previous owner, undeveloped land must be left for pedestrians and parking. The owners of the urgent care center claimed to have been misled about the restrictive covenant. They are currently suing the previous owner who sold them the land to recover some of the money lost because of the stalled project. This is a good example of why it is important to read all of the restrictions, covenants, and conditions that go a long with real estate before making a purchase. Also, this shows that even though the neighboring mall is correct, they can still lose out because of the power of eminent domain.
- Plano City Council Approves Measures to Spur Development
- Another example of public restrictions on ownership is zoning. In the article the city of Plano passed a controversial zoning change to try and bring business to the city. The zoning change is in the more affluent area of Plano. The city wants the area to be occupied by an office park and upscale restaurants; however, this upset the residents. The residents are not totally against the city's vision, but many believe that small businesses and fast food restaurants will move into the area instead of the more highly desired businesses. In my opinion this is one downside of living in the city and is a risk that one takes and must be aware of when buying real estate.
