keep your investment in different basket. Invest in land, property & also in stock market. Whenever you are in financial problem for short time you can sell your stock & get money within a week. you cannot get quick money in land or property. instead of keeping money with bank, i prefer to invest in stock.

@young, I hear you but alot of temptation to compare these asset classes.

It may be important to differentiate between:
Speculation: chief motive is selling for a profit
Investment: chief motive being safety of principal and income

So in both cases you've stated, we are dealing with Speculators. An investor, you see is not bothered much by selling.

So a tactful speculator could pick out a well-located plot, scarce in its attributes. There being no need to develop, a high profit would be attained. On the other hand a developer would pick an average piece of land in a housing area, and proceed to build houses as a means to increase eventual sale value.

I say the greater profit goes to the more skilled of the two, not necessarily the one who develops.