This study analyzes the effect of managerial style on firm value by partitioning general and administrative (G&A) expenses in the real estate investment trust industry into a nondiscretionary "structural" component associated with the costs of asset and liability management and a discretionary...

We trace the effects of corporate focus by examining the relationships among focus, cash flows and firm value. In contrast to past studies that examine the effects of diversifying across SIC-code-defined industries, we show that diversification, even within a single industry, reduces value. Our...

In this study, we examine the relationship between the liquidity of equity and its market value. We find that creating liquid equity claims on relatively illiquid property assets increases value by 12-22%. However, the fixed costs associated with creating these claims offset these liquidity...

We investigate relations among inside ownership, managerial expenses, risk sharing and equity valuations. Our engine of analysis-Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)-provides a unique and rich framework for analysis since we can calculate extremely accurate measures of asset replacement costs,...

We explore the role of expected cash-flow volatility as a determinant of dividend policy both theoretically and empirically. Our simple one-period model demonstrates that, given the existence of a stock-price penalty associated with dividend cuts, managers rationally pay out lower levels of...

This research hypothesizes that, in markets where information costs, transaction costs and the economic impact of information can vary widely, we should expect predictability to vary systematically. We test this hypothesis with data on equity real estate investment trusts (REITs) from 1985 to...

In real options models, investment can increase under some conditions when interest rates rise. This research tests for these positive interest rate responses in the context of the Capozza-Li model of land development. In the model variable capital intensity is a sufficient condition for...

Using recent theoretical advances and an extensive panel data set on metropolitan areas, this study provides new tests of the contingent claims based model of default. The empirical modeling incorporates a full complement of variables that permit direct tests of the options-based model including...

The appraisal of the "market value" of homes serving as the collateral for mortgages is a fundamental part of the underwriting process. If a loan should default, however, it is not the retail market value that the lender obtains, but rather the "recovery value." In this research, we show how...