The market for residential real estate brokerage services: Costs of production and economies of scale

Although the market for real estate brokerage services has been the subject of intense scrutiny for many years, little empirical evidence has been forthcoming regarding the performance of this market. This paper employs a translog cost function to model the underlying production function for the residential real estate brokerage industry. The results indicate that, except for very large firms, modest economies of scale persist throughout almost the entire range of output. Our results also indicate that while average firm size is increasing, many real estate firms are too small to take full advantage of the cost reductions possible with a larger scale of operation. Equally important, large firms do not command a competitive advantage over smaller firms, as fer as unit costs are concerned.     

A simple asset pricing model with heterogeneous agents,uninsurable labor income and limited stock market participation

In this paper we study a simple two-period asset pricing model to understand the implications of uninsurable labor income risk and/or borrowing constraints, limited stock market participation, heterogeneous labor income volatilities, and heterogeneous preferences. We appraise the performance of each of these in matching moments of asset returns to the data and show that limited stock market participation generates a significantly large equity premium. We also show that the distribution of wealth between stock market participants and non-participants plays an important role in asset pricing, and that the effect of borrowing constraints on asset returns are similar to that of limited participation. Finally, we discuss the practical implications of our investigation, providing an appraisal of ongoing changes in asset returns.     

The real price of parking policy

This paper is the first to empirically examine the residents’ willingness to pay for on-street parking permits as well as the cost of cruising using an identification methodology based on house prices for Amsterdam. The residents’ cost of cruising is about €1 per day. The residents’ willingness to pay for a parking permit is about €10 per day.     

产品责任制度建立的经济学分析——对“三菱帕杰罗事件”的思考

本文旨在讨论群体机会集内由经济发展、收入状况、技术水平及产品特性等因素决定的消费者对产品的质量及价格偏好、产品供求弹性和行业生产者的新技术敏感度对选择产品责任制度中产品缺陷界定标准的影响。论文在对中美两国现行产品责任制度比较分析的基础上 ,借鉴克莱因的市场绩效与质量保证模型 ,建立了产品缺陷界定标准模型 ,论证产品责任制度的产品缺陷标准界定是在机会集约束下 ,群体内各利益集团根据自身剩余最大化原则所做出的选择。     

Economic geography and transportation conditions with endogenous time distribution amongst work, travel, and leisure

This study examines possible effects of transportation conditions upon economic growth and geography. The paper proposes a model of economic growth with travel time and cost, housing, residential distribution, amenity, and endogenous time distribution amongst work, travel, and leisure. It deals with a dynamic interaction among capital accumulation, land use, housing market, environmental change, and transportation conditions in a linear economy. Although transportation systems are simple in this paper in the light of contemporary literature in transportation research, the paper demonstrates a way to integrating some important models in the literature in transportation research, economic growth theory and urban economics so that the significance of transportation systems upon economies can be properly analyzed.     

南通市外商投资企业撤资及涉税问题调查

我国近年来出现了部分外商投资企业撤资的现象。本文通过对江苏省南通市2007年以来外商投资企业撤资情况、原因及涉税问题的调查分析,提出加强对撤资企业的税收服务与管理的一些建议。     

Activities,experiences, and environmental settings: A case study of recreation opportunity spectrum relationships

Abstract

One tenet of the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) is that relationships exist between outdoor recreation activity styles, desired psychological experiences, and preferred environmental settings. The purpose of this study is to examine the nature and complexity of these relationships in light of the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum conceptual model with a group of diverse outdoor recreationists. Psychometric measures were utilized to assess the desired experiences and environmental preferences of four activity preference groups. The results indicated that significant relationships do exist between the study variables. However, systematic explanations for these relationships were not clearly apparent from the results of this particular study. The existing theoretical and empirical literature base is inadequate to accurately articulate the systematic linkages between these three concepts. Further development and refinement of these relations will occur only incrementally as a growing empirical base allows for theory construction.     

The familiarity‐preference component of on‐site recreational experiences

Abstract

Four hundred visitors to a bog environment were surveyed to determine the influence of familiarity on preference response to the visual environment, and to determine the degree of familiarity resulting from the on‐site encounter. Influence of familiarity on visitor preference was measured in terms of degree of visitor preference for visual scenes as a result of acquaintance gained through three means of familiarity: on‐site experiences, viewing of photographic materials prior to an on‐site experience, and number of previous visits. Degree of familiarity resulting from the on‐site encounter was measured by determining the degree of visitor recognition for scenes experienced during the on‐site encounter. Four findings resulted from the study: preference increased after the on‐site experience; prior photographic information decreased preference after the oil‐site experience; prior visits were associated with increased preference; and considerable familiarity resulted from the on‐site encounter, due to the on‐site experience rather than prior viewing of photographic information.     

Suitable Festival Activities for Taiwan's Tourism and Nation Branding with the Application of the PR AHP Program

Taiwan's tourism industry can be further developed to establish country branding from the perspective of tourism. Combining festival activities with tourism is a good approach. This study is aimed at identifying the festival activities that are suitable for Taiwan's tourism campaign. It has adopted the preference relation analytic hierarchy process (PR AHP) method which currently has no related program. This study has made two major contributions. It has determined suitable festival activities for Taiwan's tourism campaign and has constructed an easy-to-use PR AHP program for researchers.     

Replica core equivalence theorem: An extension of the Debreu–Scarf limit theorem to double infinity monetary economies

An overlapping generations model with the double infinity of commodities and agents is the most fundamental framework to introduce outside money into a static economic model. In this model, competitive equilibria may not necessarily be Pareto-optimal. Although Samuelson (1958) emphasized the role of fiat money as a certain kind of social contract, we cannot characterize it as a cooperative game-theoretic solution like the core. In this paper, we obtained a finite replica core characterization of Walrasian equilibrium allocations under non-negative wealth transfer and a core-limit characterization of Samuelson’s social contrivance of money. Preferences are not necessarily assumed to be ordered.