"Land speculation" refers to the practice of buying land with the hope that its value will increase over time, so that it can be sold for a profit. Full definition
The roads to the west though are developing quickly as increasing levels of land speculation are driving a number of villa developments here — hopefully beach access will remain open to all. (travelfish.org)
I survived the downturns of the early «70s, the Ontario Land Speculation Tax post years from 1974 to 1978, the crash of the 1980s, and of course the 1990s. (remonline.com)
Also, public collection of the land's rental value (which needs to be re-appraised frequently in dynamically growing economies) will deter mortgage lending for land speculation, because the rental flow will be owed to the government and hence unavailable to borrow against. (michael-hudson.com)