{"insight":{"id":"121742418","lede":"The theoretical case for a land value tax was held in high favor by classical economists from Smith to David Ricardo, John Stuart Mill, to Alfred Marshall.","slug":"adam-smith-favored-a-land-value-tax-arguing-that-a-tax-on-unimproved-land-value-w","title":"Adam Smith favored a land value tax, arguing that a tax on unimproved land value would not harm economic activity and would not increase land rents.","showTitleAsQuote":false,"epistemicStatus":"anecdotal","reports":[{"id":"74233750","title":"Land Value Tax","slug":"land-value-tax"}],"tags":[{"slug":"growth","name":"Growth","id":"23932836","lede":"

We define growth as the expansion of wealth in society; growth is about generating a "a bigger pie".

\n\n

Amidst debates over the merits of continued growth, we begin with the idea that all else equal, a society with growth, with more wealth, is preferable to one with less. Without growth, society becomes a zero-sum distributional game: anyone's gain is another's loss. Growth (all else equal) enables shared prosperity.

\n\n

But there is broad agreement that current measures of growth, such as GDP, are inadequate to the task of providing a suitable proxy to guide further growth. Whether devising improved measures that account for missing elements such as sustainability, equity, leisure time, or digital value, or constructing altogether new proxies (OECD's Better Life Index, for example), the conversation about how best to measure, and thus drive, equitable, regenerative, socially desirable growth is a rich field of debate.

\n","ledeExcerpt":"We define growth as the expansion of wealth in society; growth is about generating a \"a bigger pie\".\n\nAmidst debates over the merits of continued growth, we begin with the idea that *all else equal*, a society with growth, with more wealth, is preferable to one with less. Without growth, society becomes a zero-sum distributional game: anyone's gain is another's loss. Growth (all else equal) enables shared prosperity.\n\nBut there is broad agreement that current measures of growth, such as GDP, are inadequate to the task of providing a suitable proxy to guide further growth. Whether devising revised measures, such as Tyler Cowen's notion of wealth plus\" (GDP, plus measures of leisure time, household production, and environmental considerations), or constructing altogether new proxies (OECD's 'Better Life Index), the conversation about how best to measure, and thus drive, equitable, regenerative, socially desirable growth is a rich field of debate.","featured":true},{"slug":"efficiency","name":"Efficiency","id":"72743745","lede":"

In general, efficiency refers to maximizing outputs while minimizing inputs.

\n\n

In economic contexts, there are two main types of efficiency: microeconomic efficiency (where system efficiency is understood as maximizing a particular output given available inputs), and the efficient-market hypothesis (a state where asset prices reflect all available information).

\n","ledeExcerpt":"In general, efficiency refers to maximizing outputs while minimizing inputs. \n\nIn economic contexts, there are two main types of efficiency: microeconomic efficiency (where system efficiency is understood as maximizing a particular output given available inputs), and the efficient-market hypothesis (a state where asset prices reflect all available information).","featured":true}],"sources":[{"id":"121670317","lede":"\"A land value tax is a recurrent tax on landowners based on the value of unimproved land. There is a widely held view that a land value tax is an economically efficient means of taxing wealth and of encouraging land development. The arguments presented in the policy and academic literature tend to concentrate on the compelling theoretical case, but most do not consider the detail of how such a tax might be implemented. Indeed, land value taxation is not widely implemented as a standalone real estate tax despite the strong theoretical rationale for its use. We explore why this might be by identifying key practical, political and economic factors surrounding the implementation and operation of land value taxation in six countries. We examine the various rationales for the introduction of land value tax, reasons for its continued use or abolition (where applicable) as well the particular practical and political issues which policymakers need to consider prior to introducing land value taxation. These include the need for a comprehensive up-to-date land registry and forward planning of land use at plot level; the provision of a well-resourced and informed valuation profession; resources to undertake robust valuations which separate the value of land from the value of improvements for developed plots and do so on the basis of highest and best use; and the need for widespread political support for the introduction of a new tax (which may be difficult to secure). These issues present significant uncertainty in comparison with already-existing forms of land and property taxation. We conclude that these issues may therefore provide some explanation as to the lack of widespread adoption of land value tax despite the economic theoretical arguments in its favour.\"","link":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264837719315704","slug":"implementing-a-land-value-tax-considerations-on-moving-from-theory-to-practice","kind":"Academic Paper","title":"Implementing a Land Value Tax: Considerations on Moving from Theory to Practice","year":"2020-01-01","researchers":[{"id":"121670312","location":"Department of Real Estate and Planning University of Reading, United Kingdom","name":"Cathy Hughes","seoDescription":"","slug":"cathy-hughes"},{"id":"121670314","location":"Department of Real Estate and Planning University of Reading, United Kingdom","name":"Sarah Sayce","seoDescription":"","slug":"sarah-sayce"},{"id":"121670315","location":"Department of Real Estate and Planning University of Reading, United Kingdom","name":"Edward Shepherd","seoDescription":"","slug":"edward-shepherd"},{"id":"121670316","location":"Department of Real Estate and Planning University of Reading, United Kingdom","name":"Pete Wyatt","seoDescription":"","slug":"pete-wyatt"}]}]}}