Business sector

With the development of private property ownership, real estate has become a major area of business. Purchasing real estate requires a significant investment, and each parcel of land has unique characteristics, so the real estate industry has evolved into several distinct fields. Specialists are often called on to valuate real estate and facilitate transactions

Mortgages in real estate

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 mortgage loans (or other instruments). These are 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 by filing a court action which allows them take back the property and sell it to get their money back. For investors, profitability can be enhanced by using an off plan or pre-construction strategy to purchase at a lower price which is often the case in the pre-construction phase of development.But 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.

Real estate appraisal

Real estate appraisal, property valuation or land valuation is the practice of developing an opinion of the value of real property, usually its Market Value. The need for appraisals arises from the heterogeneous nature of property as an investment class: no two properties are identical, and all properties differ from each other in their location - which is the most important determinant of their value. So there cannot exist a centralized Walrasian auction setting for the trading of property assets, as there exists for trade in corporate stock. The absence of a market-based pricing mechanism determines the need for an expert appraisal/valuation of real estate/property

Real Estate Salesperson's Licence

A salesperson may be licensed only as the salesperson of a licensed agent

The termination of the employment of a salesperson with a licensed agent shall operate as a suspension of the licence of that salesperson until written notice has been received by the superintendent from that or another licensed agent of his or her intention to re-employ or employ the salesperson and until the salesperson's licence has been restored or renewed and the salesperson has been notified in writing by the superintendent of the restoration or renewal.

An associate, partner or employee of a natural person who is a licensed agent, or an officer, member or employee of a partnership or corporation which is a licensed agent may apply for a salesperson's licence.

An application for a salesperson's licence shall be accompanied by a statement made by or on behalf of the licensed agent for whom the applicant proposes to act as salesperson,

(a) recommending the applicant as an appropriate person to receive a salesperson's licence; and
(b) declaring that, where the applicant is granted a licence, the applicant shall act as a salesperson employed by and representing the licensed agent by or on whose behalf the statement is made.

A salesperson's licence shall have written on the licence the name of the licensed agent who is the principal of that salesperson.

Have Interview with Real Estate Brokers

Choosing the right person to sell your home is one of the most important steps of selling. Therefore, choose wisely.

At a minimum, speak with 2 or 3 brokers from different agencies. Ask prospective brokers the same list of questions, in order to compare their answers. Find out what they would do to sell your house.

Above all, choose a broker that you feel comfortable with and like. This person will help you make the biggest sale of your life, so find someone you think will do a good job!

The following is a list of questions that may be helpful to ask while speaking with prospective real estate brokers.

How many years have you been in business?
For how long have you sold houses in this area?
How many houses did you sell in the past year?
What is your commission?
If I were to work with you, how would you market my house?
Will you organize meetings with potential buyers and will you coordinate them personally?
Can you give me names and telephone numbers of other families that have used your services?

Joint DOJ/FTC Workshop on Real Estate Services

The Antitrust Division is working to build on our understanding of real estate markets, and why they may not be behaving as efficiently as they could, to aid our enforcement and competition advocacy efforts. Last October, we and the Federal Trade Commission held a joint workshop on competition issues in real estate brokerage. We invited state officials, economists, and other experts and market participants, including representatives of traditional brokers and brokers with Internet-based and other innovative business models.

The participants publicly debated the relevant issues, covering topics such as the structure of real estate transactions, use of multiple listing services, emergence of new and innovative business models, government and private restraints on real estate competition, minimum-service laws, legal prohibitions on offering rebates and other inducements to consumers, and empirical evidence on competition in the real estate industry. The Division and FTC continue to study the information presented during the workshop, and plan to issue a report later this year.

First plan (1951-1956)

The first Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru presented the first five-year plan to the Parliament of India on December 8, 1951. The total plan budget of 206.8 billion INR (23.6 billion USD in the 1950 exchange rate) was allocated to seven broad areas: irrigation and energy (27.2 percent), agriculture and community development (17.4 percent), transport and communications (24 percent), industry (8.4 percent), social services (16.64 percent), land rehabilitation 4.1 percent), and other (2.5 percent).

The target growth rate was 2.1 percent annual gross domestic product (GDP) growth; the achieved growth rate was 3.6 percent. During the first five-year plan the net domestic product went up by 15 percent. The monsoons were good and there were relatively high crop yields, boosting exchange reserves and per capita income, which went up 8 percent. Lower increase of per capita income as compared to national income was due to rapid population growth. Many irrigation projects were initiated during this period, including the Bhakra Dam, Hirakud Dam, and Mettur Dam in South India. The World Health Organization, with the Indian government, addressed children's health and reduced infant mortality, contributing to population growth.

At the end of the plan period in 1956, five Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) were started as major technical institutions. University Grant Commission was set up to take care of funding and take measures to strengthen the higher education in the country.

Contracts were signed to start five steel plants; however these plants did not come into existence until the middle of the next five-year plan