Thesis (Ph. D.)--Georgia State University, 2005. / Laura O. Taylor, committee chair; Keith R. Ihlanfeldt, David L. Sjoquist , Mary Beth Walker, committee members. Electronic text (342 p. : ill.) : digital, PDF file. Description based on contents viewed Aug. 15, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 335-341).

This thesis examines the general subject of real estate property taxation and the specific problem of evaluating the consequences of certain taxation policies. The administration of real estate property taxation in North America is examined by means of a literature review. Particular emphasis is placed on the criticism that has been directed at the tax on the basis of administration and the nature of the tax. The problem of non-uniformity of taxation and its consequences is examined in great detail. The sources of the problem and proposed remedies are reviewed and the methods of analysis are subjected to a critical analysis. The economic characteristics of real estate property taxes are analyzed, drawing particular attention to the difference between the effects of a tax on land and a tax on improvements. Taxes on land and improvements are evaluated in terms of their effects on property values, rents, investment decisions and development. Land assessment practices in a residential-business transition zone adjacent to the central business district in Regina are examined in detail, relating the assessed values to estimated market values. Assessed land values, expressed as percentages of estimated market value in the transition zone are compared to assessed land values in developing residential subdivisions also expressed as a percentage of the estimated market value. Land assessment rates in the transition zone are adjusted to approximately the same percentage of estimated market value as the land assessment rates in the developing subdivisions and the effect of this change on the distribution of taxes is calculated. The effects of the redistribution of taxes are evaluated using economic and real estate property taxation theories. The examination is limited to a qualitative analysis due to the lack of data which prevents the formulation of mathematical models that are capable of making quantitative predictions. In conclusion, although the methods employed to analyze the under- assessment of land in one part of the city do provide some indication of the consequences of the policy, the inability to make quantitative judgments limits their application as policy implementation tools. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

The real property tax has a major impact on real property owners in all Canadian municipalities. As with all systems of taxation it is important that the burden of this tax be distributed fairly and equitably. Legislators have attempted to ensure equitable treatment among real property owners by requiring that the basis of assessment should be 'actual value'. However, due to the large numbers of properties to be valued, assessors have not been able to use the market approach to value, a valuation technique known to produce 'actual values'. Rather, they have resorted to the more subjective cost approach to value. While the mechanics of the cost approach lend themselves to the mass valuation problem, they rarely produce values that can be equated with actual market values. The application of multiple regression analysis is presented as a solution to this valuation problem. Multiple regression analysis enables the assessor to produce objectively the 'actual value' of all single family homes in a municipality. After presenting multiple regression analysis as a modern application of the market approach to value, the applicability of this valuation technique is tested on actual sales data. A sample of approximately four hundred recently sold single family homes is subjected to valuation by multiple regression analysis. Various experiments, including means of stratifying the data are presented in an attempt to produce high standards of solution. While the statistical results of the experiment are not of sufficient calibre for practical assessment purposes, they do reveal how continued experimentation can improve the applicability of this valuation technique to mass appraisal. Multiple regression analysis is the assessor's tool of the future. It facilitates the application of a valuation technique that will permit the assessor to meet his statutory obligation while still allowing him to adhere to sound appraisal methodology. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

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The objective of this thesis is to develop a conceptual model for classification of real property rights and public regulations. The model is called the Legal Cadastral Domain Model. The model is intended to be a terminological framework for cross-border exchange of cadastral information. Parties exchanging cadastral information via the model do not require detailed knowledge of the legal system in which the right or regulation is created. The model is based on the principle that real property rights and public regulations influence real property ownership by being either beneficial or encumbering for the real property owner. The theoretical departure of the research presented in this thesis is in comparative legal theory and terminology. Real property rights and public regulations are important parts of real property legislation as they describe and secure the use and other exploitation of land, water and air. The research is conducted through studies in real property legislation and associated literature. The model has been developed through case studies on real property rights in Portugal, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden and public regulations in Portugal and Sweden. The generated results show that it seems possible to describe real property rights and public regulations regardless of their legal origin, at least in Western legal systems. The thesis also includes a discussion of terminological aspects concerning definitions of three-dimensional (3D) real property. The thesis consists of a summary and 6 papers. / <p>QC 20120629</p>

Research on house prices and housing markets has traditionally been concerned with the modelling of house price determinants using hedonic regression equations and other methods of data interpretation. While this research has unveiled some useful insights into the relationships between housing supply, housing demand, and selling price, more recent work has focused on the "specialness" of housing as a commodity and the subsequent dismissal of regression techniques that only serve to throw us into a "statistical soup". Recent research is different in two key respects. First, forces other than macro-level variables (eg. interest rates and the availability of finance) and micro-level variables (household income, size, proximity to work) are believed to contribute to the fluctuations in housing prices over time and through space: specifically, more subjective evaluations of locational amenity, identity construction, and community are now considered in the valorisation of housing. Furthermore, newer research also understands that exogenous influences (eg. immigration, foreign investment) now play a key role in the determination of residential value. This research on residential real estate markets in Canada engages in discussions revolving around the latter of the two approaches using both qualitative and quantitative methods. At the inter-urban scale, analysis of house price movements in Canada's largest cities shows the divergence of Toronto and Vancouver from other CMAs, a trend that coincides with the increasing globalisation of both cities over the last 15 years. Further, intra-urban analyses of both Toronto and Vancouver demonstrate differential impacts of globalisation and economic restructuring within each city with particular neighbourhoods being placed on more of a "global" real estate market (eg. gentrified neighbourhoods, residential areas experiencing offshore investment, and areas of settlement for wealthy immigrants). The particular impacts of globalisation are, however, very different in each city and is dependant upon the nature of the global flows that converge there. Moreover, these results are not politically mute; considerable effort has been expended in Vancouver at least to obscure the actual effects of internationalisation on the regional housing market.

Research on house prices and housing markets has traditionally been concerned with the modelling of house price determinants using hedonic regression equations and other methods of data interpretation. While this research has unveiled some useful insights into the relationships between housing supply, housing demand, and selling price, more recent work has focused on the "specialness" of housing as a commodity and the subsequent dismissal of regression techniques that only serve to throw us into a "statistical soup". Recent research is different in two key respects. First, forces other than macro-level variables (eg. interest rates and the availability of finance) and micro-level variables (household income, size, proximity to work) are believed to contribute to the fluctuations in housing prices over time and through space: specifically, more subjective evaluations of locational amenity, identity construction, and community are now considered in the valorisation of housing. Furthermore, newer research also understands that exogenous influences (eg. immigration, foreign investment) now play a key role in the determination of residential value. This research on residential real estate markets in Canada engages in discussions revolving around the latter of the two approaches using both qualitative and quantitative methods. At the inter-urban scale, analysis of house price movements in Canada's largest cities shows the divergence of Toronto and Vancouver from other CMAs, a trend that coincides with the increasing globalisation of both cities over the last 15 years. Further, intra-urban analyses of both Toronto and Vancouver demonstrate differential impacts of globalisation and economic restructuring within each city with particular neighbourhoods being placed on more of a "global" real estate market (eg. gentrified neighbourhoods, residential areas experiencing offshore investment, and areas of settlement for wealthy immigrants). The particular impacts of globalisation are, however, very different in each city and is dependant upon the nature of the global flows that converge there. Moreover, these results are not politically mute; considerable effort has been expended in Vancouver at least to obscure the actual effects of internationalisation on the regional housing market. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate