Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

12-2023

Abstract

In the United States and globally, cities are increasingly plagued by deepening housing crisis and widening economic inequality. In the face of these crises, this Article focuses on the potentially powerful role for land law and policy in the search for justice. Specifically, it does so by reference to two unusual yet illuminating choices of theory and application: the case study of Singapore, and the school of thought of Georgism, both of which accord inordinate and paramount importance to land. Singapore’s land law and policy have been characterized by extensive takings and givings of land. In consequence, the State owns approximately 90% of Singapore’s land, and the home ownership rate for residential households stands at an exceptionally high 88.9%. I explicate three principal aspects of Singapore’s land law and policy, structured around the themes of takings, givings, and taxation of land. I then apply the analytical lens of Georgism, which originated with the 19th-century American political economist, Henry George. George placed land at the very heart of his theory. He identified land monopoly as the principal cause of inequality, and land policy as a fundamental "question of justice." This Article applies a Georgist lens to the interpretation, criticism, and justification of Singapore’s land law and policy. It argues that Singapore’s approach demonstrates how land law and policy can be powerfully employed to achieve the Georgist ideals of impeding private monopoly and mitigating economic inequality — demonstrating the role of land law and policy in the search for justice. At the same time, Singapore’s experience also speaks to the need for strong government accountability and other supplementary redistributive mechanisms, pointing toward the need for justice beyond land law and policy.

Keywords

Singapore, land law, housing policy, Henry George, Georgism

Discipline

Asian Studies | Property Law and Real Estate | Public Policy

Research Areas

Public Interest Law, Community and Social Justice

Publication

Fordham Urban Law Journal

Volume

51

Issue

2

First Page

403

Last Page

454

ISSN

0199-4646

Publisher

Fordham University

Copyright Owner and License

Authors

Additional URL

https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol51/iss2/3/

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