Property Rights

>Let's try to take this conversation back ontopic.
>
>If you were setting up a space station for permanent habitation, what
>rules would you think would be best, with regard to property
>ownership?

I would think, that profit would drive the first habitats. The most
profitable habitat would be one were the residents are professionals
only, no children allowed, just those who have some needed skills and
are working on habitat projects.

So I would bet that this kind of habitats would be the first ones to
emerge with other kinds of habitats following a lot later.

They probably would live only for some years on the habitat to make
their fortune and than settle again on Earth.

Nobody would have to be a renter, he would get his residence from the
company which owns the habitat for free.

The company has to provide attractive terms to get highly skilled
workers and workers who are willing to live some years under not so
perfect live conditions - with the prospect of leaving the habitat
wealthy.

So what comes to mind first to me would be an asteroid mining company.
The company could pay out for instance half of the profits in worker
wages and give a minimum wage guarantee even when taking on losses at
the beginning of the mining operation.

>Would each resident have to be a renter, or could he "own" his
>residence in the same way that a condominium owner owns his unit, but
>not the whole building?

Some part of the worker wages would be company shares so that workers
would become shareholders, - their share of the company getting
bigger if they stay longer at the habitat.

They would not become owners of the residence, just users, but they
would own part of the mining company and be interested in its
prosperity by self interest.

>
>What rights would an owner have to use or modify his residence?

The same or even less as every renter would have I think.

Frank

www.solar-thruster-sailor.info

For the first solar sail design of a carrier ship with docking able
lander and with roller reefing
making it possible to leave the atmospheric drag zone near a space
station and getting back again delivering asteroidal ore
take a look at:

www.solar-thruster-sailor.info/figs/fig13.html