Nothing is earned, except perhaps the fruits of one's labor.

> how did you get the cash to pay said property manager?

He said he'd give them a cut of the rent.

> How did your ancestor get to own the property in the first place?

So his parents earned it, not him.

Or they took it by force, or stole it.

Doing genealogy, one of the most interesting ancestors I have actually got mentioned in a discussion in parliament for his real estate shenanigans. His wife had inherited some small but vaguely defined land from her first husband. He then became mayor and land assessor, and drew up ridiculously generous borders (and low tax assessments) for that land. No one thought to stop him. At one point during a sale, some officials had commented that they couldn't find that he had title to this land, but they didn't follow up. By the time they complained about it in parliament, it was two generations and many land transfers ago so they didn't think it was worth it to try to unwind it.

His parents worked hard and earned it so they could do with it what they like - such as benefiting their children. Nothing wrong with that.

The trouble with this is it's a playbook for huge inequality. If there is very little cost to holding onto land, then as soon as someone accrues some, it never leaves their family tree. For example, do you believe that the Duke of Westminster should be the beneficiary of his aristocratic ancestors? He is literally living off of land accrued hundreds of years ago.

>So his parents earned it, not him.

Doesn't this mean that the problem is inheritance, not (only) land ownership? But I imagine taximg inheritance is very unpopular with everyone.