This paper uses a Granger causality estimate to assess whether the theoretical Ricardian understanding of the relationship between house and land prices is valid in a dynamic urban land market. The paper compares a Site Adjusted Land Price Index with an equivalent Quality Adjusted Housing Price Index developed for Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia for the period 1985 to 2010. The study clearly identifies the increasing gap in the rate of growth between vacant land and detached house prices for a metropolitan area and concludes that house prices Granger cause land prices but not that land prices Granger cause house prices. Refereed/Peer-reviewed