In the economic literature on fisheries there is a long tradition of presenting the role of private property rights in efficient and sustainable fisheries management. We contribute to the literature by analyzing the market value of one of the world’s most well defined fishing rights: the ownership of Swedish property where the fishing rights are an inseparable part of the real estate that can be traded in an open market.

The fishing rights are primarily used for recreational fishing. For real estate that includes dwellings and vacation homes, the estimated value of these rights is about SEK 60,000 (about € 6300), in 2016 prices. This corresponds to 4.5% of the average real estate value. However, the values are heterogeneous, and for real estate with agricultural and/or forestry land the value of the rights is less than SEK 10,000. This could be due to forest owners (as opposed to vacation home owners) primarily view the real estate as a means of generating economic returns, and the potential for this is low for fishing. The valuation of the right is expected to be a determinant of engagement in resource management and is thus important in the development of public policies for both the fish resource and recreational fisheries.