We have the right to repair

You don’t really own your land, right? The government just lets you use it as long as you pay your taxes, and, of course, you have to comply with zoning laws and all sorts of rules and regulations.

Maybe you have a mortgage, so the bank owns some of your property, too. When I ask clients if they own a home, there’s a common answer: Well, I’m making payments to the bank. I hope to own it someday.

I can tell you that “ownership” of real estate means that you have the right to occupy and control the land but you don’t have the right to pick it up and move it to, say Manhattan, where it might be w...