Steudler et al. report on the performance of cadastral systems internationally in Benchmarking Cadastral Systems (1997). The authors met serious difficulties comparing data from different countries, suggesting that more progress had to be made in the definition of concepts and terminology. This concern is reflected among the recommendations of the Bathurst Declaration: "Recognising the difficulties in interpretation of the many land administration related terms, develop a readily accessible thesaurus [?] to facilitate a better understanding of the terminology used." (FIG, 1999; no. 14). The need for more elaborated concept sets - for a theoretical basis - was among the motives for proposing a concerted research project: Modelling Real Property Transactions. Researchers from 11 European countries co-operate in the project that gained status as a COST action as of March 1st 2001. The majority of researchers relate to surveying studies, and hence to the FIG. The main objective of the action is to improve the transparency of real property markets and to provide a stronger basis for the reduction of costs of real property transactions by preparing a set of models of real property transaction. The developed models and a subsequent comparative analysis can be used for improving the efficiency of the procedures. Further-more, the COST action will support Ph.D.-studies by providing a much-needed international research framework and a basis for Ph.D.-level courses. The paper develops on the multi-disciplinary approach of the project and presents initial findings.
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