The Wealth of Nations

The Wealth of Nations

by

Adam Smith

Ground rent is the portion of rent that covers the cost of the land itself (as opposed to house rent, or the rent paid to cover the cost of the buildings on that land).

Ground Rent Quotes in The Wealth of Nations

The The Wealth of Nations quotes below are all either spoken by Ground Rent or refer to Ground Rent. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Labor, Markets, and Growth Theme Icon
).
Book 5, Chapter 2 Quotes

Ground-rents, so far as they exceed the ordinary rent of land, are altogether owing to the good government of the sovereign, which, by protecting the industry either of the whole people or of the inhabitants of some particular place, enables them to pay so much more than its real value for the ground which they build their houses upon; or to make to its owner so much more than compensation for the loss which he might sustain by this use of it. Nothing can be more reasonable, than that a fund, which owes its existence to the good government of the state, should be taxed peculiarly, or should contribute something more than the greater part of other funds, towards the support of that government.

Related Characters: Landlords
Page Number: 1068
Explanation and Analysis:
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Ground Rent Term Timeline in The Wealth of Nations

The timeline below shows where the term Ground Rent appears in The Wealth of Nations. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Book 5, Chapter 2
Labor, Markets, and Growth Theme Icon
Institutions and Good Governance Theme Icon
...construction, plus the ordinary rate of interest (so that the builder can make a profit). Ground rent pays for the cost of the land. Ground rent is higher wherever there is more... (full context)
Labor, Markets, and Growth Theme Icon
Capital Accumulation and Investment Theme Icon
Institutions and Good Governance Theme Icon
...house rent taxes can be assessed based on the market rent (including for owner-occupied houses). Ground rent is the best rent to tax, as landlords do not actively use their lands, a... (full context)
Institutions and Good Governance Theme Icon
Taxing interest may seem advantageous, because interest is like ground rent : it is a market price which taxation will not change. (Rather, taxes effectively deduct... (full context)