The trend in house prices is of importance to governments, financial institutions and households. However, currently no proven reliable indicator of house prices exists. The lack of an accurate house price series is due to two major factors. First convenient and accurate data on house prices are not readily available and data collection from the Land Registry Office is both time consuming and costly. The second factor relates to the problem of changes in the quality of the series through time. This quality problem has two basic aspects. First, the quality of the index may be influenced by shifts in the distribution of sales between different values of homes. The second problem arises from the unique nature of real estate as to its’ location, age, condition, etc. Unlike other indices, there is no standardized unit of housing to which price quotations may, be reduced, thus the quality of the housing sold in each year will be different. In this study, the problems encountered in sampling and constructing a price index for the single family housing stock are identified and analyzed both conceptually and empirically. The conceptual examination involves a review of the literature as well as an analysis of the methodologies employed in the construction of the major housing indicies in use today. The empirical analysis is done through the construction of a price series for the eight rapidly growing cities and municipalities of the Greater Vancouver Regional District for the years 1949 to 1976. The indicies are based upon data obtained from the Land Registry Offices in British Columbia and are designed to be statistically representative of all sales for those areas during the study period. The analysis forms a basis for future research into housing indicies and in particular, provides a reliable benchmark series against which alternative measures of price changes can be tested. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

The objective of this thesis is to gain a better understanding of the process by which residential land prices are determined and change over time. A special concern is also shown for the causal relationship between the prices of building lots and the selling prices of new single-detached housing built on those lots. In the introductory chapter, the upward climb over the years in the average price of building lots relative to the increase in new house prices is identified as a matter in need of closer study. The significance of this subject for planning practice is seen to lie in the power of planning authorities to intervene in the operation of property markets, and in the role of planning authorities implied in many proposals for solving the land price problem. In Chapter Two, numerous theoretical analyses and empirical studies of the determination and inter-temporal variation in residential land prices are surveyed. A critical assessment of the literature made in the first part of Chapter Three identifies several shortcomings. A static rather than dynamic approach, the assumption of market equilibrium and perfect competition, inadequate treatment of supply-demand interaction, and a limited behavioral content, characterize most of the works surveyed. A theoretical model is subsequently developed to explain the process by which residential lot prices are determined and change over time. Its fundamental hypothesis is that the level of new house prices and their changes over time are a prime determinant of lot prices and their intertemporal variation, while the profit-maximizing behavior of lot sellers and housebuilders generates the process by which lot prices increase over time. In Chapter Four, an empirical investigation is proposed for testing the theoretical model. Data on residential construction in Canada over the 1951-1977 period and financed under the provisions of the National Housing Act are selected for the investigation. Since the data pertain to a portion rather than the whole of the lot market, the theoretical model is reformulated in light of this and other empirical conditions. The Chapter is concluded with an outline of the statistical procedures to be used in the investigation. The results of the study are presented in Chapter Five. They are found to be generally consistent with the hypotheses of the empirical model, and the postulates of the theoretical model. It is concluded, among other things , that lot sellers and housebuilders behave in the manner proposed by the models, and that lot price increases are determined by house price increases. However, the validity of the model and wider application of the empirical findings are judged to be limited by the characteristics of the data used in the study. The concluding chapter offers several suggestions for future research on land prices and some implications for planning and public policy. The need for an improved economic understanding in urban planning is identified. A potential role is identified for planners in the provision of information in a market where imperfect information is a major source of observed market failure. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Purpose – The purpose of the study was to develop a baseline decription of the current state of corporate real estate management within South Africa. Design/methodology/approach – A combined online/paper questionnaire was administered on the top 200 firms listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Findings – Majority of the firms have no formally organised real estate unit. A few have only recently organised formal real estate units as a department of the company, reporting mostly to the CEO even though the latter seldom gets involved in Corporate Real Estate decision. The CFO appears to be the one in charge of corporate real estate decisions in most of the firms. Majority of the firms own, rather than lease their corporate real estate due to location, transport advantages, minimisation of the risk of rent changes and community links that are advantageous to their business effort. The principal reason for leasing was the flexibility it affords in relocating in future. Other issues covered include the cost treatment of using CRE, the importance of CRE management, in-house management and outsourcing of CRE services and the criteria for selecting an external CRE management service provider. Business Implications – Service providers need to take into account specific criteria used by respondent firms in the selection of who manages their corporate real estate. Originality/value – This paper provides the first comprehensive description of corporate real estate management on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

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published_or_final_version / Urban Planning / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Construction Project Management

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

Development of the Real Property Law Regulation in Czech Lands in 19th and 20th centuries The purpose of my master degree thesis is to analyse the development of legal regulation in the field of real property law in the Czech lands between years 1800 and 2000. There is several reasons for my research which are specified in the thesis's Preface: the fact I am very interested in everything what is connected with the legal aspects of real property questions, my original profession (having secondary school education in construction domain - and construction is a real property according to the valid Czech legal form) and influence of the denial of certain general principles of property law in the Czechoslovakia in the past to my family. The thesis is composed of ten chapters, each of them describing the legal regulation of the real property law in different historical period of time. Chapter One is introductory and defines basic characteristics of real property law in the past, beginnings of its concept as a fundamental human right and specificities of the soil including mentioning the exclusive Czech legal institute buildings being a real property. Chapter Two shows the essential institutes of legal relations to the real properties from the beginnings of Czech statehood (feudalism and absolutism times)...