Spatial Fiscal Policy Lab · Computer-Assisted Mass Appraisal · Geomatics

The Living Landvaluescape Atlas & Policy Lab

Every train line, school, park, and business alters the value of land around it. In his pioneering doctoral research at Kingston University and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Dr Tony Vickers demonstrated how Computer-Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA) and modern GIS can map unearned location rent — enabling a fair, revenue-neutral shift away from taxes on jobs, enterprise, and homes.

Launch Tax Effect Demonstrator (TED) Explore 4 British Case Studies Read 2009 Doctoral Thesis

Interactive Policy Simulator (PhD Thesis Chapter 5)

Tax Effect Demonstrator (TED): Revenue-Neutral Fiscal Shift

Use the slider below to simulate shifting local government finance from conventional property taxes (Council Tax on homes and Business Rates on commerce) onto Annual Land Value Tax (site value V only, buildings exempt):

Fiscal Shift: 50% LVT Shift Conventional: 50% | Land Value Tax: 50%

0% (Current System: Council Tax & Rates) 25% Pilot BID 50% Balanced Shift 75% Primary LVT 100% Pure Site Value Capture

Residential Archetype A

Modest Terrace Home

Compact high-efficiency town terrace with modest site footprint in Newbury / Reading.

Baseline Council Tax: £1,420

Simulated Annual Tax: £1,070

✓ Saves £350 / yr

Commercial Archetype B

Renovated High St Shop

Active retailer making £80,000 interior & green energy improvements in a town centre.

Baseline Uniform Rates: £4,800

Simulated Annual Tax: £3,450

✓ Saves £1,350 / yr

Residential Archetype C

Suburban Family Semi

Typical 3-bedroom semi-detached with garden in southern Oxfordshire.

Baseline Council Tax: £2,180

Simulated Annual Tax: £1,930

✓ Saves £250 / yr

Speculative Archetype D

1-Hectare Brownfield Plot

Vacant prime development land held dormant near transit waiting for capital gains.

Baseline Holding Cost: £450

Simulated Annual Tax: £4,675

British Empirical Evidence

The Living Atlas: 4 British Pilot Case Studies

Oxfordshire & Vale of White Horse (County Council Study, 2004–2005)

Dr Vickers evaluated 28,000 parcels across southern Oxfordshire using GIS property records. Modeling separate unimproved site values showed agricultural and green-belt land held minimal site rent, while urban transport corridors in Didcot and Abingdon absorbed enormous publicly created location surpluses.

“County studies proved mass spatial appraisal was technically viable in Britain with existing Land Registry polygons and VOA rating data.”

Newbury & West Berkshire Commercial Core (Town Centre CAMA, 2003)

Comparing rateable values against actual site footprint revealed the distortion of conventional rates: thriving local retailers making heavy interior improvements were penalized with soaring tax assessments, while adjacent speculative vacant lots were untaxed.

“Under LVT, the tax on improved high-street shops drops by over 50%, while dormant parking lots face an incentive to develop.”

London Jubilee Line Extension (Wetzel & Vickers Land-Value Uplift, 2002)

Dave Wetzel (TfL Vice-Chair) and Dr Vickers documented how the £3.5bn publicly funded Jubilee Line Extension generated over £13bn in unearned land-value windfall for private landowners within 1,000 yards of Canary Wharf, Southwark, and Bermondsey stations.

“A mere 27% capture of the land value windfall created around JLE stations would have paid for the entire rail line with zero taxpayer debt.”

Liverpool Smart-Tax BID Blueprint (Lincoln Institute Fellowship, 2003–2004)

Tony’s Lincoln Institute Fellowship designed the institutional architecture for a Business Improvement District (BID) using land-value capture to fund municipal regeneration, demonstrating that commercial tenants welcomed LVT when revenues funded cleaner streets and transit.

“Business Improvement Districts provide the ideal municipal stepping stone for English local authorities adopting Land Value Taxation.”

Doctoral Thesis & Flagship Publications

Browse full 58-document repository →

Site Navigation