The Land Equivalent Ratio as an Element of Land Consolidation

Abstract

Due to the political changes and consolidation of land under shared-ownership a comprehensive land consolidation process would be necessary in Hungary. The aim of this process would be to form new viable land parcels which could be managed more economically. The determination of the exchange ratio is also a key issue of this process. The aranykorona (AK)(traditional Hungarian unit of evaluation, dating back 150 years) does not give a perfect value. The aim of the research involves the practical application of the expected future land consolidation law. A land equivalent ratio will make it easier to find solutions for land consolidation, and will thereby help strengthen economically viable branches of the economy, and encourage the establishment of new ones. It could play an important role in compulsory land purchase procedures, in land exchange transactions and in the development of the land market generally. On the other hand we have to emphasize that Hungary's agricultural land is one of its national treasures, and is an irreplaceable, continuously and conditionally renewable natural resource. Protecting it, and promoting the best uses of its features, are primary tasks. Before agrarian and rural development may proceed, it is necessary to be able to classify and provide a true evaluation of the land's agricultural characteristics, in other words, its soil attributes and the production types and locations.