Real estate, or immovable property, is a legal term (in some jurisdictions) that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. Real estate (immovable property) is often considered synonymous with real property (also sometimes called realty), in contrast with personal property (also sometimes called chattel or personalty). However, for technical purposes, some people prefer to distinguish real estate, referring to the land and fixtures themselves, from real property, referring to ownership rights over real estate.

The terms real estate and real property are used primarily in common law, while civil law jurisdictions refer instead to immovable property. Property law, the area of the common law that governs real property, differs from contract law in that it focuses primarily on rights that one person holds over all other people, as opposed to specific individuals.

Background

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In recent years, many economists have recognized that the lack of effective real estate laws can be a significant barrier to investment in many developing countries. In most societies, rich or poor, a significant fraction of the total wealth is in the form of land and buildings. In most advanced economies, the main source of capital used by individuals and small companies to purchase and improve land and buildings is mortgages -- bank loans for which the real property itself constitutes collateral. Banks are willing to make such loans at favorable rates in large part because if the borrower does not make payments the lender can foreclose, that is, file a court action that lets them take the property and sell it to get their money back. However, in many developing countries, there is no effective means by which a lender could foreclose, so the mortgage loan industry as such either does not exist at all or is only available to members of privileged social classes.

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relistr (Real Estate Mortgage) Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:37:51 -0000
Zillow: Mortgage Rates on the Rise http://relistr.com/real-estate/zillow-mortgage-rates-on-the-rise.html
Rocky Road to Real Estate Riches – Wall Street Journal http://bit.ly/63bogh
dreamplanbuild (Dream Plan Build) Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:37:40 -0000
Rocky Road to Real Estate Riches – Wall Street Journal http://bit.ly/63bogh
Google Goggles for Real Estate- Rock Your Marketing- Offline? http://bit.ly/82TVTH (via @agentgenius)
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Google Goggles for Real Estate- Rock Your Marketing- Offline? http://bit.ly/82TVTH (via @agentgenius)
Say Hello to the new Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers! We are the future of real estate!
MetroBrokers (Metro Brokers) Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:37:30 -0000
Say Hello to the new Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers! We are the future of real estate!
IncInvestor.com: Trouble In A Golden Paradise?: Forbes editors on Dubai's rocky real estate and.. http://tinyurl.com/ygtbzrs
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IncInvestor.com: Trouble In A Golden Paradise?: Forbes editors on Dubai's rocky real estate and.. http://tinyurl.com/ygtbzrs
Willy Florestal's Page - Commercial Real Estate Professional ...: This is a group for user Realtors that either hav... http://bit.ly/6IJhx2
TeamCCC (Dale Thele, CFB) Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:37:27 -0000
Willy Florestal's Page - Commercial Real Estate Professional ...: This is a group for user Realtors that either hav... http://bit.ly/6IJhx2

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