The annual conference of the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) offers state and local assessing officials the opportunity to hear varied perspectives on property tax policy from eminent economists, academics, and practitioners who have a special interest in property taxation. Each year, the Lincoln Institute sponsors a seminar for conference participants on current issues in property tax policy. This year’s sessions will focus on “Tax Increment Financing: Policy and Administrative Challenges.”

The video classes are multimedia treatments of diverse topics related to urban land policy. Developed to support both moderated and self-paced courses of the Program on Latin America and the Caribbean’s distance education, they are also well suited to generate discussion in neighborhood associations, professional associations, public entities and other groups interested in these topics. Videos are presented primarily in Spanish.

In recent years, vacant land has acquired great importance in the definition of land policies. Housing programs need vacant land and an increased demand for its purchase ends up in land value increments that often make programs unfeasible. This course, offered in Spanish, aims to present alternatives for the management of vacant land in the definition of land policies.

In recent years, the idea of vacant land has acquired great importance within the definition land policy. As housing programs require the use of vacant land, the demand for such land grows, resulting in elevated values that often make these programs unfeasible. This course, offered in Spanish, takes a closer look at alternatives for vacant land management in land policy.

Proper alignment of real estate valuation or assessments with its market value is central to achieving equity in the distribution of tax burdens. Understanding valuation methods allows one to maximize skills, minimize limitations, and identify the most appropriate tools and techniques for each case. This course addresses the issues related to mass appraisal of real estate with emphasis on fiscal uses. Elements needed to build a system that can support cadastral appraisals in a fair and efficient way are presented and discussed. Specific requirements: Participants must have knowledge of property valuation methods and mastery of general statistics (measures of central tendency, dispersion analysis, linear regression).

Proper alignment of real estate valuation or assessments with market value is central to achieving equity in the distribution of tax burdens. Understanding valuation methods allows one to maximize skills, minimize the limitations and identify the most appropriate tools and techniques for each case. The course, offered in Spanish, addresses issues related to mass appraisal of real estate, with emphasis on fiscal uses. Material is presented and discussed including the elements necessary to build a system that can support cadastral appraisals in a fair and efficient way.

Specific requirements: Participants must have knowledge of property valuation methods and mastery of general statistics (measures of central tendency, dispersion analysis, linear regression).

This course is especially designed to provide an understanding about current urban issues in Latin American cities and their roots in land and urban policies to a journalism audience. Mass media and journalism professionals have great potential to inform the public regarding cities and their problems as well as influence urban and land policy. The course will cover the fundamentals of land markets (land use and price determination), the nature and limits of property rights in Latin American legislation, and alternative land-based tools for financing urban (re)development. Special attention will be given to new urban planning instruments currently being applied in the region, including value capture, inclusionary zoning, and regularization of informal settlements.

Various countries have long used mechanisms to mobilize value increments as a fundamental component of urban policy in order to finance urban development, social housing, and public spaces, and also to conserve natural resources and heritage. This course, offered in Spanish, discusses the main instruments used in a variety of countries for the recovery/mobilization of value increment, assessing their objectives, scope, limitations and alternatives to finance urban projects.

In recent years, vacant land has developed a great influence within the realm of defining land policies. Housing programs require vacant land, yet with the increase in demand and the resulting increase in value of land, these programs become unfeasible. This course, offered in Spanish, aims to present alternatives for vacant land management during the creation of land policies, focusing on housing for low-income populations, on social facilities, on public space, and on large urban projects.

This course presents students with the fundamental concepts and tools of economic theory needed to form a critical analysis of the factors that influence land prices in both formal and informal markets. Students will examine the origins of land prices along with the foundations of urban economics in order to better analyze the effects that the regulation of real-estate markets has on land prices.