Summary:

Hans G. Nutzinger discusses property economics from the viewpoint of New Institutional economics. While he agrees with Heinsohn and Steiger’s emphasis on the difference between property and possession, he criticises them for not sufficiently acknowledging that these concepts, having evolved under quite different institutional and cultural conditions, cannot simply be used as clear-cut definitions to be analysed primarily with the instruments of logical analysis. And while the author does not doubt the importance of collateralising assets, resulting in a loss of their property premium, he is not convinced of the idea to attach this premium only to assets that are not money.