In a message dated 1/24/03 10:32:20 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: >> real estate markets aren't competitive, in the >> economic sense of the word? > >In the sense of rivalry, there is plenty of competition in cities. >Maybe not in some rural areas. > >Fred Foldvary Having just moved from Iowa I got to see rural real estate markets in operation. Federal, state and local land regulations often discourage the conversion of currently-farmed land for other purposes, like indstrial or high-density residential use. The number of people engaged in full-time farming has continued to decline, and virtually nobody not already engaged in farming or from a farming family enters farming. There's thus little additional demand for farming land, making the real estate market in rural areas. When real estate developers can get county boards of supervisors to rezone rural land, it quickly enters the thick and competitive market for all other types of land.
DBL
