Ireland, Rent, and the Theologies of Real Estate
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3384/de-ethica.2001-8819.152323Keywords:
Abstract
In this paper, taking the Irish economic crash of 2008 as the starting point, a theological response to real estate speculation is considered. By analysing the ways in which property development was a key factor in the collapse of the Irish economy, the flaws of such markets in crisis are exposed. Yet ethical concerns persist even when real estate markets are stable. Drawing on the Christian tradition around usury, an argument is made that an appropriate ecclesial reaction to the problems created by economies largely driven by real estate speculation involves developing alternative modes of conceiving land and economy. By drawing on the Vineyard song of Isaiah 5, a claim is made that faithful Christian practice demands a response of economic experimentation around property driven by a telos other than profit.References
Anex, Valérie. Ghost Estates. Geneva: Uqbar, 2013.
Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologica, Vol. 38. London: Blackfriars, 1975.
Banc Ceannais na hÉireann. Residential Mortgage Arrears and Repossessions Statistics: Q4 2014. Dublin: Banc Ceannais na hÉireann, 2014.
Bonk, Jonathan. Missions and Money. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2008.
Brounen, Dirk, Piet M. A. Eichholtz, Stefan Straetmans and Marcel A. J. Theebe. ‘Inflation Protection from Homeownership: Long-Run Evidence, 1814–2008’, Real Estate Economics 42 (2014), pp. 662–689. DOI: 10.1111/1540-6229.12023
Bruggemann, Walter. Isaiah 1-39. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998.
Calvin, John. Calvin’s Ecclesiastical Advice, translated by Mark Beaty and Benjamin W. Farley.Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1991.
Carney, Caroline and Bertrand Maître. Constructing a Food Poverty Indicator for Ireland. Dublin: Department of Social Protection, 2012.
Clinch, Convery, Frank Convery and Brendan Walsh. After the Celtic Tiger. Dublin: O’Brien Press, 2002.
Clough, Higginson and Michael Parsons. ‘Usury, Investment and the Sub-Prime Sector’, Association of Christian Economists Discussion Papers 001–003 (2009), pp. 1-23.
Coleman, Marc. ‘We Need these Expert Scaremongers’, Sunday Independent 23 September (2007).
Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Annual Housing Statistics Bulletin 2008. Dublin: Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, 2008.
Doherty, Sean. Theology and Economic Ethics: Martin Luther and Arthur Rich in Dialogue. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198703334.001.0001
Eatwell, John, Murray Milgate and Peter Newman (Eds.). The New Palgrave: A Dictionary of Economics Volume 4 Q-Z. London: Macmillan Reference, 1998.
Eichengreen, Barry. ‘The Irish Crisis and the EU from a Distance’, conference paper, Ireland - Lessons from Its Recover from the Bank-Sovereign Loop, Dublin, 2015. Online at: http://www.imf.org/external/ np/seminars/eng/2014/ireland/ (accessed 2015-12-11)
Fama, Eugene F. and G. William Schwert. ‘Asset Returns and Inflation’, Journal of Financial Economics 5 (1977), pp. 115–146. DOI: 10.1016/0304-405X(77)90014-9
Graeber, David. Debt: The First 5,000 Years. Brooklyn, NY: Melville House, 2011.
Hartzell, Hekman, and Mike E. Miles. ‘Real Estate Returns and Inflation’, Real Estate Economics 15 (1987), pp. 617–637. DOI: 10.1111/1540-6229.00407
Holland, Kitty. ‘Number of Homeless Families in Dublin up 40% since June’, The Irish Times, 12 March (2015).
House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee. The Impact of the Bedroom Tax in Scotland: Devolving the DHP Cap. London: The Stationery Office, 2014.
Housing Agency Ireland. Resolving Unfinished Housing Developments, Annual Progress Report 2014. Dublin: Department of Environment, Community and Local Government, 2014.
Keane, John B. The Field. Cork: The Mercier Press, 1991.
Kelly, Morgan. ‘On the Likely Extent of Falls in Irish House Prices’, Quarterly Economic Commentary 2 (2007), pp. 42-54.
Kerridge, Eric. Usury, Interest and the Reformation. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2002.
Kirby, Peadar. Celtic Tiger in Collapse. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan, 2010. DOI: 10.1057/9780230278035
Lewis, Michael. Boomerang. London: Penguin, 2011.
Luther, Martin. Luthers Works,Vol. 45. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 1962.
Manley, Johanna (Ed.). Isaiah Through the Ages. Menlo Park, CA: Monastery Books, 1995.
Marx, Karl. Economic & Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844. London: Lawrence & Wishart, 1970.
McDonald, Frank, and Kathy Sheridan. The Builders. Dublin: Penguin, 2009.
McWilliams, David. Follow the Money. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan, 2009.
Mercille, Julien. The Political Economy and Media Coverage of the European Economic Crisis: The Case of Ireland. Abingdon: Routledge, 2014.
Mercille, Julian. ‘Ireland Under Austerity’, Counterpunch, April 3 (2014).
Mills, Paul. ‘Investing as a Christian: Reaping Where You Have Not Sown?’, Cambridge Papers 5:2 (1996), pp. 1-4.
O’Connor, Brendan. ‘The Smart, Ballsy Guys Are Buying up Property Right Now’, Sunday Independent, 29 July (2007).
O’Toole, Fintan. Ship of Fools. London: Faber and Faber, 2009.
Perkins, John M. Beyond Charity: The Call To Christian Community Development. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1993.
Piketty, Thomas. Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, 2014. DOI: 10.4159/9780674369542
Polanyi, Karl. The Great Transformation. Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 2001.
Private Members Business. ‘Dáil Éireann - Private Members Business (Sinn Féin), 23 - 24 September 2014’. Parliamentary Report. Dublin: Tithe an Oireachtais, 2014.
Ross, Shane. The Bankers. Dublin: Penguin, 2009.
Rubens, Bond, and James Webb. ‘The Inflation-Hedging Effectiveness of Real Estate’. Journal of Real Estate Research 4 (1989), pp. 45–55.
Ryan, Donal. The Spinning Heart. Dublin: Doubleday Ireland, 2012.
Ryan, Órla. ‘Rent in Dublin Is Up by 16.6%, But What about Other Areas?’, The Journal, 17 November (2014).
Smith, Adam. An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations,Vol 1. Indianapolis, IN: Liberty Fund, 1981.
Whelan, Karl. ‘Ireland’s Economic Crisis: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’. UCD Centre for Economic Research Working Paper Series, University College Dublin, Dublin, July (2013).
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2015 Hargaden
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
