Wanna buy some "space"?

The Chamber of Real Estate and Builders' Association (CREBA) had launched its official publication last year called Space+. Its tagline, “explorations in modern living”, suggests that the publication is more than just a magazine for property and construction. Space+ also encompasses lifestyle, business, leisure and travel. It aims to showcase Philippine culture, tourism and investment to the world.

But here's a more interesting space that is truly a by-product of modern explorations. So guess what? I'm sure this will gonna prick your lunacy. The space I'm referring to is that parcel of land in the moon that is being sold as residential properties.

Sounds crazy? If you think that only gullible people would avail of such out-of-this-world properties, well you better think again. There are already some Hollywood celebs, former US prexies, investment gurus and other affluent people as per reported in some media who have joined in the rush to purchase some pieces of space.

And you hear it right, dude! There's a sale going on that is out of this world. As of 2006, more than 2.5 million people from 180 countries have already bought properties on the moon in sales that reached more than US$ 1-million as per Robert Roy Britt, a senior writer-researcher for www.space.com.

The idea for selling lunar property came to an obscure American entrepreneur named Dennis Hope in 1980. He established a firm called Lunar Embassy. The sales operation is conducted mostly over the Internet. For about US$ 20 to US$ 30 per one-acre plot, buyers will receive a deed of sale, site map, copy of the lunar constitution bill of rights and copy of declaration of ownership filed with the US government as proofs of ownership.

He recalled that the 1967 UN Outer Space Treaty, which stipulates that no government can own extraterrestrial property, neglected to mention individuals or corporation. He used the loophole to make his property assertion legitimate. To further back-up his claim, he also used a clause in the US Homestead Act of 1862, which through 1986 allowed an individual to claim property by occupying and improving it.

But the cornerstone of his claim is the absence of governmental protest. The notices he sent to the American and Russian governments and the United Nations had been left unanswered. In short, he based his ownership on a presumption that if there's no legal obstacle around, a business is legitimate until proved otherwise.

Since its inception, tremendous growth has allegedly been achieved by Hope's firm each year. Based from the latest figures in its website, Lunar Embassy has over the years sold more than 400 million lunar acres. And most of the sales have been attributed to speculation. Speculators are rushing in as they typically do when there are valuable information to trade. For this instance, they are banking on high-profile space missions, such as the rovers on Mars, and President Bush's new space vision to put up a US base on the moon.

Nonetheless, critics are aplenty as the millions of dollars the Lunar Embassy had generated. They do not believe to Hope's antics. They maintain that the claim is a fraud and null and void ab initio as it does not have an official support of any government for that matter. As such, buyers of lunar plots will get nothing as no government will recognize and protect their rights!

Yet as weird and eccentric as it may seem, we have to realize that most discoveries and inventions have passed through this kind of arduous process, and even public ridicule, before they have been accepted as they are. Hence, those lunatic... er, lunar property buyers may have some reasons for their investment decisions.

For your information, there have been claims of ownership of the moon dated back in the 18th century. Selling of lunar properties have been discreetly being done since the 70's. Hence, we can categorically say that Hope is not the pioneer in this regard. It just so happened that the Lunar Embassy gained a lot of noise in the 80's – a decade of market frenzies and economic bubbles. And up to this day, Lunar Embassy remains the leader in lunar realty business.

Honestly, I do not really think any of the lunar deeds are valid (just as yet). Perhaps, a provision to the constitution of the US government or any superpower nation for that matter that would allow an entity to own a piece of the moon is just what it takes to 'officially legitimize' what Hope and the other hopefuls are claiming.

But please take note that although owning a lunar property may seem in the offing; however, dwelling in the earth's natural satellite is another thing. It would take a very, very long while that this dream – or craziness – may become a reality. The transition may be more extensive as to the time when the Greek philosophers had dreamed of flying to the moon up to the time when the American astronauts had actually landed on the lunar surface. But the moment it happens, a global war won't be far behind.

© 2007 by Ludwig Ritchel A. Kalambacal