Introduction: Value, Preferences, and Inequality in the Housing Market -- Benevolence, Interest, and Establishing Authority -- Romancing the Home -- Malleable Prices -- Real Estate Agents and Neighborhood Inequalities -- Conclusion: Making Preferences, Making Prices, and Making Neighborhoods.

The real estate market is highly intermediated, with 90% of buyers and sellers hiring an agent to help them transact a house. However, low barriers to entry and fixed commission rates result in a market where inexperienced intermediaries have a large market share, especially following house...