unearned increment

American  

noun

1. the increase in the value of property, especially land, due to natural causes, as growth of population, rather than to any labor or expenditure by the owner.

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unearned increment British  

noun

1. a rise in the market value of landed property resulting from general economic factors

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Etymology

Origin of unearned increment

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Adoption of the single tax would do away with the profits which come from land appreciation and are known as unearned increment or economic rent.

From Time Magazine Archive

But severe levies on unearned increment jack up the rate in some brackets as high as the Federal tax.

From Time Magazine Archive

In a few years the unearned increment was at least 100 per cent.; rents also went up surprisingly, and also, alas! the taxes.

From Ranching, Sport and Travel by Carson, Thomas

We have seen that Mr. Churchill also aims at the ultimate expropriation of the whole future unearned increment of the land.

From Socialism As It Is A Survey of The World-Wide Revolutionary Movement by Walling, William English

All the money given by the public on the side is unearned increment.

From The Itching Palm A Study of the Habit of Tipping in America by Scott, William R