The Theory and Evidence on Real Estate Financial Decisions: A Review of the Issues

There has developed a growing body of literature, both theoretically and empirically based, on real estate financial decisions. Despite these advances, there are a number of important issues that remain unanswered. The purpose of this paper is to provide a review and analysis of where research on real estate financial decisions has been, where it stands today, and where it is likely to be headed in the future. Some of the unresolved issues in real estate investment analysis are also discussed. The hope is that this review will provide the stimulus for solving some of these complex issues.     

Social responsibility and corporate reputation: The case of the Arthur Andersen Enron audit failure

We examine the influence of social responsibility ratings on market returns to Arthur Andersen (AA) clients following the Enron audit failure. Chaney and Philipich (2002) found that AA’s loss of reputation resulted in negative market returns to AA clients following the Enron audit failure. Proponents of social responsibility argue that social responsibility can improve the reputation of the firm, while detractors argue that social responsibility expenditures are a poor use of shareholder money. If social responsibility sends a signal to investors regarding the reputation/ethics of management, social responsibility could mitigate the negative returns to AA clients following the Enron audit failure. Using a matched sample of AA and non-AA firms, we do not find evidence that social responsibility mitigated the negative returns to AA clients following the Enron audit failure. Our results are inconsistent with claims that social responsibility can burnish a firm’s reputation in a time of crisis and with prior research indicating a positive relationship between social responsibility and market value.     

Mirroring Canadian Industrial Policy: Strategy Formation at Dominion Textile from 1873 to 1990

This paper tracks the strategies of a “quintessentially Canadian company,” Dominion Textile Inc., through most of its history, from 1873 to 1990. Created entrepreneur-ially, but soon consolidated politically, it became the dominant player in an important industry in Canada, faltering bureaucratically before it renewed itself competitively. As discussed in the conclusions, the company mirrored Canadian industrial policy remarkably closely throughout its life, through the states of “getting there” politically, “staying there” positionally, and “keeping there” competitively. Overall, it was remarkably deliberate in its strategic behaviour, yet that deliberateness exhibited emergent consequences, much as a Slinky toy placed on a top step walks its way down the stairs. Résumé Cet article trace les stratégies de Dominion Textile Inc., une entreprise qui représente la quintessence de l'industrie canadienne, tout au long de la plus grande partie de son histoire (1873–1990). Créée sur le mode de l'esprit d'entreprise mais bientǒt consolidée sur un mode politique, elle est devenue l'acteur dominant d'un secteur industriel important au Canada, puis a failli s'effondrer sur un mode bureaucratique avant de se renouveler sur un mode compétitif. Comme lïndique la conclusion, pendant toute son histoire cette entreprise a reflété de très près la politique industrielle canadienne à travers les différentes phases qu'elle a connues: y arriver politiquement, y rester stratégiquement, s'y maintenir compétitivement. Dans l'ensemble, son comportement stratégique a été remarquablement délibéré. Toutefois, ce caractère délibéré a pu générer des conséquences émergents, comme un jouet Slinky qui, posé sur la plus haute marche, descend l'escalier tout seul.     

The influence of CEO and CFO power on accruals and real earnings management

In this study, we examine the effect of CEO and CFO power on both accruals and real earnings management (AEM and REM, respectively), and the extent to which CEO and CFO power mitigate the effect of one another on AEM and REM. We further examine whether the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) altered these effects. In the pre-SOX period, we find that AEM (REM) is greater when the CEO (CFO) is powerful relative to the CFO (CEO). In the post-SOX period, however, we find that the effect of relative CEO power on AEM subsides, whereas the effect of relative CFO power on REM persists. Additionally, we find evidence to suggest that powerful CFOs inhibit the AEM preferences of powerful CEOs in both the pre- and post-SOX periods. Finally, we find evidence to suggest that powerful CEOs inhibit the REM preferences of powerful CEOs in the pre-SOX period, but not in the post-SOX period. Collectively, our results suggest that the power of the CEO relative to the CFO is an important factor in the both the type and magnitude of earnings management.

     

Improving Auditors' Consideration of Evidence Contradicting Management's Estimate Assumptions

Auditors have difficulty evaluating the assumptions underlying management's estimates. One source of these problems is that auditors appear to dismiss evidence contradicting management's assumptions because their initial preference to support management's accounting biases their preliminary conclusions and, thus, their interpretation of evidence. We experimentally examine whether auditors with a balanced focus (i.e., a focus on documenting evidence that supports and contradicts their preliminary conclusion) are less likely to dismiss evidence that contradicts management's assumptions than auditors with a supporting focus (i.e., a focus on documenting evidence that supports their preliminary conclusion). We expect and find that, compared with auditors with a supporting focus, auditors with a balanced focus create documentation that is less dismissive of evidence contradicting management's estimate. Importantly, a balanced focus changes auditors' cognition and affects how auditors interpret contradicting evidence rather than merely increasing their documentation of this evidence. The effects of reduced dismissiveness persist to improve auditors' evaluations of a biased estimate and subsequent actions, improving audit quality in an important and difficult area.     

The Effect of Confidence in Valuation Estimates on Arbitrager Behavior and Market Prices

The authors develop a complete framework for optimizing trading decisions that incorporates investors' confidence in their valuation estimates. Quantified estimates of arbitragers' uncertainty about their appraisals of asset values are shown to be extractable from market prices alone. An empirical investigation over the 1977–2015 interval indicated that confidence levels exhibit persistence subject to mean reversion, with a positive relationship found with the magnitude of existing mispricings. Higher returns are discovered to long (short) arbitrage of an asset, whose intrinsic value is higher (lower) than the market price, after rises in uncertainty among informed investors.     

The impact of NCAA men’s basketball probations on the quantity and quality of student applications and enrollment

Collegiate sports programmes have been characterized as the front porch of a university, serving to publicize the institution and draw students to the door. Previous research in this area has indicated a positive correlation between athletic success and the quantity and quality of students attending the university. Conversely, we seek to analyse if athletic malfeasance, as measured by NCAA probations of men’s basketball programmes, negatively affects either the quantity or quality of students at a university. Our findings suggest that while basketball probations do not change the overall quantity of applications nor enrolment at a university, there is a significant adverse impact on the quality of freshman enrolling at the university as measured by Scholastic Aptitude Test scores. Our finding suggests that athletics do indeed serve as a front porch to a university and that athletic sanctions in men’s basketball have a detrimental effect on the average quality of students attending a university.     

A Critical Review of Market Entry Selection and Expansion Into Japan's Market

ABSTRACT

This article offers a contribution to the Japan market entry model selection. It critically analyzes the various models such as the eclectic, transaction cost analysis, Uppsala, resource-based, interactive network, and bargaining power models, with examples as they relate to foreign firms that had used some of these models to successfully establish their businesses in Japan, as well as some foreign firms that have failed in the market. Data were gathered from the past academic journals, the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), newsmagazines, and other sources. Knowledge of corporate Japan and the society played a major role in gathering data for this study. The aim of this article is not to prescribe or offer a solution for the best-available model to use in the market entry into Japan but rather to act as a trigger for a critical checkup on foreign firms planning to internationalize their business and enter the Japanese market. Since there has not been a specific model designed for a Confucian society like Japan, an integrated model combining all the models together was examined using the market entry in Japan of Vodafone, Yahoo, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, and Bayer Yakuhin as examples. Finally, the article offers some suggestions on how to enter and expand business in the Japanese market.     

Mortgage lending in Chicago and Los Angeles: A paired testing study of the pre-application process

In 2000, the Urban Institute paired African-American and Hispanic testers with whites and sent the pairs to visit lenders in Chicago and Los Angeles, in order to inquire about information on obtaining a home mortgage. In Chicago, African Americans and Hispanics systematically received less information and assistance than comparable whites; while in Los Angeles, the treatment of minority and white testers did not differ statistically from each other. Multivariate analyses for Chicago indicate that large lenders treat minorities more favorably than smaller lenders and that lenders with substantial numbers of applications from African-Americans treat African-Americans more favorably than lenders with predominantly white application pools.