Do We Own?

[genkaus]

We assure continuity of ownership, not the value of whatever is owned. At a future date, the property may be worth less than what said person paid for it.

What corresponding value?

By "value" here I'm not referring specifically to its monetary worth but to how much use I can get out of it. For example, as soon as I buy a car, its monetary worth (resale value) is halved due to it having the label of "second-hand" attached to it. But its value may be in form of how long and how frequently I can use it.

Suppose, I buy a parcel of land and, having examined it, I know that it is sufficiently rich to support a certain minimum output per year for 10 years. And under the ownership model, I have the choice to start farming 20 years from now and be reasonably sure that I would get a minimum amount of output per year for 10 years, i.e., a certain amount of value from it. My reasons for deferment could be anything. Maybe I expect prices of crops to go up. Maybe I otherwise occupied right now or the land represents my retirement fund. Nevertheless, the choice of deferment is available to me because the value is assured.

Under the priority use model, suppose I pay for priority use of the land for 10 years while expecting a certain minimum output. And that is the output I would get if I use it now. But I defer it for 20 years, others with secondary use rights will use it, which will result in my bottom line dropping after 20 years. The choice of deferment here carries with it a certainty of loss of value. My question is, how would this certainty of loss be addressed or offset within this model?

On a side note - as it happens - we can even assure the monetary value of what is owned for a future date. The futures contracts and forward trades are made specifically for this purpose.