What Is Ownership????

[James Hamling]

There is an easy knee-jerk reaction to simply believe ownership in real estate is just like ownership of one's X-box; it's yours, you paid for it and nobody has any say, use or control of it but you yourself alone, for ever and ever and ever. Well, as most things in life, unfortunately it just ain't that simple Forky.... 

With the rise of certain politics at play, compounded by a once in a lifetime pandemic (fingers crossed for that once part) and the content-4-profit age much has recently been said and question as to what ownership in Real Estate actually means, is, and where it can be "lost". While this seems to often turn into a rabbit-hole of various political and information spectrums in arguments to various thoughts, I say let's take it back to it's root of What Is Ownership to guide us. 

Ownership is, simply: the act, state, or right of possessing something. 

Now, take notice, ownership does not inherently include perpetuity, as in permanence of ownership. Enter the specter of EMMINENT DOMAIN (duhn dun dduuunnnnnnnnn)........ 

In real estate there IS a thing called Eminent Domain which yes Forky, it does mean the government can, in theory, take your property from you. And darn right, early days of WWII it was widely used in conjunction of other powers to confiscate and allocate a whole assortment of items and goods "for the war cause". But, does this mean Uncle Sam is lurking around the corner in 2021 awaiting to pounce on your rental? Well, let's look at Eminent Domain to answer this. 

Eminent Domain was first examined (challenged) in 1875! Yeah, that's right, your Grandparents Grandparents lived under and dealt with Eminent Domain. Eminent Domain has long been used, and is specified, to acquire property for public use (''appertains to every independent government. It requires no constitutional recognition; it is an attribute of sovereignty.”Boom Co. v. Patterson, 98 U.S. 403, 406 (1879)). 

However, the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution stipulates: “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” Thus, whenever the United States acquires a property through eminent domain, it has a constitutional responsibility to justly compensate the property owner for the fair market value of the property. See Bauman v. Ross, 167 U.S. 548 (1897); Kirby Forest Industries, Inc. v. United States, 467 U.S. 1, 9-10 (1984)

So Forky, Ownership gives you the rights to possession and use of your real estate BUT, yes, there are forces that "could" impact that ownership, because we live in a society who like every democracy on earth has laws and mechanisms in place that afford the governance the powers to impact those ownership rights when the ends justify the means for the public good. I know, it's not a popular message to hear in 2020, but it's the truth, and it's been around for a super looooong time before 2020, and will be around for a long time after. 

So in summary, Ownership is a statement and condition of temperance, especially in terms of Real Estate. We may "own" a property today but yes, if we don't pay our tax's, mortgage, association or eminent domain happens, yes we would "loose" ownership of that property, and that is exactly as it has been our entire lives, the lives of those before us, and before them and so on. 

SO while there is "but what if..." to Ownership of our Real Estate Investments Forky, take heart they are no different than they have been since the oldest Real Estate Investor any of use have ever known started with 1 nickel in their pocket, and built an empire. That the "but, what if..."'s are no different than that tiny chance we accept of getting in a car crash each time we get behind the wheel, or when we fly, eat at a restaurant, or of any one of lifes rare exceptions to the normal state of things. The fact that so many are newly learning of this does not mean it is a new fact, or something anyone will use to confiscate all property which by the way is currently $33.6 TRILLION dollars and would require the U.S. government to pay out 7X the entire US annual budget in compensation to "take".(US total annual budget is $4.79 Trillion)

So what is ownership: The right to possession and use of property, until and unless otherwise impacted, adjusted or changed by legal measures under US law.