It’s worth noting that projected prices play a significant role in decision-making, since decision-making is all about evaluating counterfactuals. Suppose Scrooge ties his purchasing decisions to his paper net worth; then his effective purchasing power changes even though he isn’t getting an income stream directly from the apartment. (Cases where he takes out a loan on the apartment, as jimrandomh suggests, do seem somewhat different.) That is, if his home is increasing in value, that means he doesn’t need to convert other income streams into savings as much, and so can convert them into consumption instead. Or he might make riskier financial decisions with other asset classes, trusting that the more valuable house could better offset losses elsewhere.
It’s worth noting that projected prices play a significant role in decision-making, since decision-making is all about evaluating counterfactuals. Suppose Scrooge ties his purchasing decisions to his paper net worth; then his effective purchasing power changes even though he isn’t getting an income stream directly from the apartment. (Cases where he takes out a loan on the apartment, as jimrandomh suggests, do seem somewhat different.) That is, if his home is increasing in value, that means he doesn’t need to convert other income streams into savings as much, and so can convert them into consumption instead. Or he might make riskier financial decisions with other asset classes, trusting that the more valuable house could better offset losses elsewhere.