At first appearance the 2010 movie, Burlesque, featuring Cher and Christina Aguilera, seems to be about a struggling burlesque club.  It’s actually about real estate.

In the movie, the club is on the ocean.  A real estate investor offers to buy the club because he wants to build a skyscraper but the owner won’t sell.  However, the owner is about to lose the club to foreclosure.  The club owner goes to the luxury condos across the street to offer to them the air rights above the club.  Currently, the condos have a view of the ocean.  If the skyscraper is built there, the condos will lose their view.

If there is a small building on the beach and a tall condo across the street, the tall condo can buy the air rights above the small building. This will ensure that the condo always has a view of the beach.

The club owner sells the air rights above the club to the condo.  This ensures that the club will never become a tall building.  The condos can guarantee their view forever.  The club stays in business, and it’s a happy ending.

This is exactly how air rights work in real life.  There is a short building with a great view.  The tall building across the street also has the view.  In order to ensure that the short building always remains short, the tall building buys the air rights above the short building.

Occasionally, air rights are also used to create a walking path above the street.  Let’s say the hospital is on one side of the street and the parking garage is on the other side.  They have a corridor that goes above the road to attach them.  The hospital would have had to obtain the air rights above the road in order to do this.

In most cases, when you buy property, you buy the surface rights, subsurface rights, and air rights.  But it is possible to separate them.

On the Florida real estate state exam, you need to know the difference between subsurface rights, surface rights, and air rights.  If you are studying for the state exam, and need some help, check out the state exam review classes at Demetree School of Real Estate.

Please note that Karen Climer has no affiliation with Climer School of Real Estate.  Her father, Ron Climer, sold Climer School of Real Estate in 2014.  It has since been involved in several mergers and acquisitions and is owned by a large investment company.  Karen owns Demetree School of Real Estate in Orlando, Florida.