We study bilateral exchange, both direct trade, and indirect trade that happens through chains of intermediaries, or middlemen. We develop a model of this activity and present a sequence of applications. We illustrate how, and how many, intermediaries get involved, and how the terms of trade are...

Housing, in addition to providing direct utility, facilitates credit transactions when home equity serves as collateral. We document big increases in home-equity loans coinciding with the start of the house-price boom, and suggest an explanation. When it is used as collateral, housing can bear a...