Ross Levin explains what accounts for differences in protection of property rights across different societies.
"The security of property rights, however, is not a natural occurrence; rather, it is anoutcome of policy choices and social institutions. Any government strong enough to define andenforce property rights is also strong enough to abrogate those rights (North and Weingast,1989). Thus, protection of property rights requires finding a balance between: 1) an activegovernment that enforces property rights, facilitates private contracting, and applies the lawfairly to all, and 2) a government sufficiently constrained that it cannot engage in coercion andexpropriation. This paper describes two views of what leads a society to greater or lesser protection ofproperty rights. The law view stresses that differences in legal traditions formed centuries ago inEurope and spread via conquest, colonization and imitation around the world continue to accountfor cross-country differences in property rights. The endowment view argues that differences innatural resources, climate, the indigenous population, and the disease environment affected theconstruction of institutions and these self-sustaining institutions continue to shape property rightstoday. These views are not mutually exclusive, nor do they exhaust the possible explanations ofcross-country differences in property rights."
Levin sums up his investigation this way:
"Property rights affect individual liberty and national prosperity. While scholars have hypothesized about the sources of variation in property rights for over 2500 years, researchers have begun to test theories empirically only recently. Researchers have made enormous strides in empirically assessing different theories of the determinants of property rights, but these investigations are in their nascent stages. The law and endowment views offer compelling theories of how legal heritage and natural selection endowments shape property rights today. I see no reason to neglect either explanation but believe that considerably more work is needed in each."
[Editor's note: The link below is to a 150KB PDF document.]
Thanks to Peter Gordon's Blog
FULL STORY: Law, Endowments and Property Rights

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts
Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement
An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions