Mr. Ricardo's Theory of Land Rent

摘要

The top award for research given by the American Real Estate Society is the David Ricardo Medal, and 2017 is the 200~(th) anniversary of the publication of The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation. This paper is an introduction to and extension of Ricardo's theory of land rent. The paper also presents the basic Ricardian system in which the progress of society (e.g., population growth) results in an increase in land rent and a decline in returns to capital. The Ricardian system leads to the conclusion that the problem of diminishing returns to capital can be overcome by free international trade.