Land Lines January 2014
Combating Zombie Subdivisions
Partially built subdivisions and vacant lots are skewing development patterns and diminishing fiscal health in municipalities throughout the U.S. Intermountain West. Three communities successfully redesigned these excess development entitlements in their jurisdictions.
Residential Wealth Distribution in Rio de Janeiro
In Brazil, residential structures represent about one-third of total net fixed capital, so their value is important for economic and social policy. This report asks, what generates residential wealth in Rio de Janeiro? How much residential wealth is there? Who holds it? Where is it located?
How Do Foreclosures Affect Property Values and Property Taxes?
Drawing on proprietary foreclosure data from RealtyTrac—which provides annual foreclosures by zip code for the period 2006 through 2011—this report is the first to examine the impacts of foreclosures on local government property tax values and revenues.
This issue explores the successes of three U.S. Intermountain West communities in remedying distressed land subdivisions; the distribution of residential wealth in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro, and the various factors that determine residential property values; and the detrimental effects of foreclosures on local government revenues, land values, and property taxes.