As important as prices are, they will only function properly in a society that has adequate protections for private property. Additionally, theses protections are only as good as the reliability and predictability of the governmental institutions that provide those protections. This crucial principle continues to be one of the most misunderstood values in economics. Mises, in his book Liberalism, defines private property rights as “private ownership of the means of production”. Property right is having the sole authority over what is done with a particular good. Mises also explains in Human Action how private property is a key ingredient to any healthy economy. He states, “Private ownership of the means of production is the fundamental institution of the market economy. It is the institution the presence of which characterizes the market economy as such. Where it is absent, there is no question of a market economy.” Austrian Economists believe private property rights to be the first principles of a sound economy. In order for prices to be meaningful, individuals have to be able to freely exchange goods as they see fit. For individuals to carry out exchanges, they must first have clearly defined rights to ownership of the goods that are willing to exchange.