Public land

In all modern states, some land is held by central or local governments. This is called public land. The system of tenure of public land, and the terminology used, varies between countries. The following examples illustrate some of the range.

Commonwealth countries

In several Commonwealth countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Canada, public lands are referred to as Crown lands. Recent proposals to sell Crown lands have been highly controversial.

France

In France, (French: domaine public) may be held by communes, départements, or the central State.

Portugal

In Portugal the land owned by the State, by the two autonomous regions (Azores and Madeira) and by the local governments (municipalities (Portuguese: municípios) and freguesias) can be of two types: public domain (Portuguese: domínio público) and private domain (Portuguese: domínio privado). The latter is owned like any private entity (and may be sold), while public domain land cannot be sold and it is expected to be used by the public (although it can be leased to private entities for up to 75 years in certain cases). Examples of public domain land are the margins of the sea and of the rivers, roads, streets, railways, ports, military areas, monuments. The State's private domain is managed by Direção-Geral do Tesouro e Finanças and the State's public domain is managed by various entities (state companies and state institutes, like Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente, I.P., Estradas de Portugal, E.P.E., Refer - Rede Ferroviária Portuguesa, E.P.E., APL - Administração do Porto de Lisboa, S.A., etc.).

Rural land sales

Rural Land Sales in real estate refers to the sale of undeveloped land, usually as a parcel or tract of several acres of a ranch.

Definitions

The term rural can be defined as "the comprehensive, nonspecific word referring to life on the farm or country", essentially the opposite of urban, and usually at a great distance from the nearest city center or metropolitan area. The word land is commonly known as "ground considered as property" or "the solid part of the earth's surface not covered by water". Sales is the term used for the exchange of property for an agreed sum. The combination of the three words rural land sales is commonly used in real estate when referring to the sale or acquisition of just land located in these rural areas, not usually classified as Real Property, since it does not contain a home, or other type of buildings.

Application

In the United States, the purchase of Rural Land or raw acreage is generally for investment purposes, although some buyers intend to build a home and reside there. Often without standard utility services provided by a metropolitan municipality readily available, individuals have the responsibility to install methods of achieving a regulated standard of living. These methods, which include traditional and modern alternative methods are regulated by various legal structures to ensure their safety to the environment and neighboring residents. These may include: