what is property 
property is a term describing anything that a person or a business has legal title over affording owners certain enforceable rights over said items examples of property which may be tangible or intangible include automotive vehicles industrial equipment furniture and real estate the last of which is often referred to as real property most properties hold current or potential monetary value and are therefore considered to be assets but properties can simultaneously be liabilities in some situations case in point if a customer sustains an injury on a company s property the business owner may be legally responsible for paying the injured party s medical bills understanding propertyintangible property describes assets such as stock and bond certificates that represent current or potential value but don t carry intrinsic value while these items are merely pieces of paper they might represent significant amounts of money other types of intangible property such as a brand s reputation are more nebulous and cannot be signified by a paper document intangible properties like design concepts song lyrics books and screenplays are categorized as intellectual properties even though these are not physical in nature they may carry significant value examples of intellectual properties include nike s swoosh logo and the chemical formula for coca cola to enforce ownership of intangible properties individuals and businesses typically hire lawyers to legally protect their items from infringement types of propertyproperty in the broad sense describes anything that a person group of people or entity owns it includes real property personal property private property government owned property and more real property is one of the most familiar types of property it includes land buildings occupying the land and the rights to use and enjoy the land real property is the focal point of real estate which deals with transactions e g buying selling renting and managing involving land and buildings used for residential commercial and agricultural use just as there are various types of property there are different types of interests in property interests in real property include freehold estates and non freehold estates freehold estates are ownership interests that have no expiration and can be inherited non freehold estates or leasehold estates are not transferrable and have expirations such estates include leases and other rental agreements property law stipulates how real property can be used and the manner in which it can be legally transferred personal property is as well known as real property but differs in that it does not include real estate e g land and buildings attached to the land personal property is property that can be physically transferred and is not permanently attached to the land it includes clothing automobiles furniture tools and more personal property also includes intangible assets such as bank accounts patents and investments although they are not physically moveable rights remain with the person or entity listed as the legal owner making them personal property private property is any property owned by a natural person or private entity it includes personal real tangible and intangible assets including intellectual property private property is often categorized as real or personal however not all real or personal property is private property private property is not open to the public nor is owned by a government governments can however assume ownership of private property under certain circumstances such as eminent domain government owned property includes all property including real property resources and other tangible and intangible assets owned by a government body in contrast to private property most government owned properties are public for example libraries public schools and city parks are government owned property available to the public however all government owned property is not accessible to the public and some publicly accessed property is not always available to the public for instance a city park may have a curfew after which the public cannot access it a government owned property such as a military research facility or lab may not be accessible at all to the public sometimes private property can be escheated to a local government body rendering it temporarily or permanently government owned also in some cases the private property owner forfeits or sells their property rights to the government evaluating property assets