no lock the gate to gas, page-4

jwfc, you wrote:

" which gets me back to where I started, just whose land is it anyway ?"

In reply I post these parts.

"FREEHOLD TITLES
?Under the Freehold Title System that operates in Australia the Buyer receives an unrestricted title to the property. Features of this system include:
(a) Title / ownership of the property for an unlimited time period
(b) Capability for the title of the property to be transferred to family members.
(c) Freedom of the owner to
(i) occupy the property
(ii) rent the property
(iii) leave the property vacant
(iv) sell the property
(d) Government guarantee to the freehold title

In English law, a fee simple (or fee simple absolute) is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. It is the most common way that real estate is owned in common law countries, and is ordinarily the most complete ownership interest that can be had in real property short of allodial title, which is often reserved for governments. Fee simple ownership represents absolute ownership of real property but it is limited by the four basic government powers of taxation, eminent domain, police power, and escheat, and it could also be limited by certain encumbrances or a condition in the deed.

In certain jurisdictions, including England and Scotland, a freehold (also called frank-tenement and franktenement) is the ownership of real property, being the land and all immovable structures attached to such land. This is opposed to a leasehold in which the property reverts to the owner of the land after the lease period has expired.[1] Immovable property includes land and all that naturally goes with it, such as buildings, trees, or underground resources, but not such things as vehicles or livestock (which are movable).
For an estate to be a freehold it must possess two qualities: immobility (property must be land or some interest issuing out of or annexed to land); and ownership of it must be of an indeterminate duration. If the time of ownership can be fixed and determined, then it cannot be a freehold.
The greatest possible estate in land, wherein the owner has the right to use it, exclusively possess it, commit waste upon it, dispose of it by deed or will, and take its fruits. A fee simple represents absolute ownership of land, and therefore the owner may do whatever he or she chooses with the land. If an owner of a fee simple dies intestate, the land will descend to the heirs.

fee simple n. absolute title to land, free of any other claims against the title, which one can sell or pass to another by will or inheritance. This is a redundant form of "fee," but is used to show the fee (absolute title) is not a "conditional fee," or "determinable fee," or "fee tail." Like "fee" it is often used in deeds transferring title as in "Harry Hadit grants to Robert Gotit title in fee simple..." or similar words.

Now, have I got you a little more confused ??

Good luck and regards.