In standard principal-agent problems, the issue at hand is how to align the interests of the agent with those of her principal. A commonly used contract involves the principal paying the agent a percentage of the sale price as commission. With respect to real estate brokerage conracts, it has...

We measure the effect of foreclosures on the sale prices of nearby properties using a dataset of condominiums in Boston. A foreclosure in the same association and at the same address depresses the sale price by 2.5 percent, but properties in the same association but located at a different...

We examine the history of U.S. mortgage as a means of illustrating the influence of different aspects of the U.S. common law system on financial development. We hypothesize that the value of common law to financial development is with respect to the flexibility that the system provides market...

Equitable redemption is a feature of all common law mortgages that allows a borrower a chance to redeem the real estate in the event of default. What is puzzling is that equitable redemption is universally enforced in all mortgages, including commercial mortgages. The purpose of this study is to...