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By far, the greatest determinant of land value in modern economies is location -- nearness to population centers. Therefore, land speculation is most entrenched -- and most profitable -- in cities. When landowners keep land out of use, waiting for a higher price, people who wish to use land must resort to poorer lands, because the price asked for better lands is more than they can pay. This creates an artificial scarcity of land throughout the economy, and forces wages down. |
What if there were no land speculation?