Martin Schmalz
@martincschmalz.bsky.social
Professor of Finance, Economics, and Real Estate
University of Oxford @ox.ac.uk
University of Oxford @ox.ac.uk
Referees are not becoming more polite
November 14, 2025 at 8:30 AM
Referees are not becoming more polite
When Zillow shut down its iBuying program in 2021, questions arose about the viability of instant home buying.
New research from So Hye Yoon (Princeton job market candidate) examines a key challenge: information asymmetry.
Cloe Garnache hosts this episode of The Property Pod 👇
New research from So Hye Yoon (Princeton job market candidate) examines a key challenge: information asymmetry.
Cloe Garnache hosts this episode of The Property Pod 👇
November 12, 2025 at 7:33 PM
When Zillow shut down its iBuying program in 2021, questions arose about the viability of instant home buying.
New research from So Hye Yoon (Princeton job market candidate) examines a key challenge: information asymmetry.
Cloe Garnache hosts this episode of The Property Pod 👇
New research from So Hye Yoon (Princeton job market candidate) examines a key challenge: information asymmetry.
Cloe Garnache hosts this episode of The Property Pod 👇
Why don't landlords make green investments, even when they could boost property value?
New episode The Property Pod with Brian Lancaster & Cameron LaPoint explores PACE financing.
YT: youtu.be/-uV8MleO080
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/04gq...
➡️
New episode The Property Pod with Brian Lancaster & Cameron LaPoint explores PACE financing.
YT: youtu.be/-uV8MleO080
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/04gq...
➡️
November 7, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Why don't landlords make green investments, even when they could boost property value?
New episode The Property Pod with Brian Lancaster & Cameron LaPoint explores PACE financing.
YT: youtu.be/-uV8MleO080
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/04gq...
➡️
New episode The Property Pod with Brian Lancaster & Cameron LaPoint explores PACE financing.
YT: youtu.be/-uV8MleO080
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/04gq...
➡️
PSA: if you contact me about doing research under my guidance, do some research without my guidance first.
For example, on the topic of what kind of research I could possibly provide guidance for.
For example, on the topic of what kind of research I could possibly provide guidance for.
November 6, 2025 at 4:57 PM
PSA: if you contact me about doing research under my guidance, do some research without my guidance first.
For example, on the topic of what kind of research I could possibly provide guidance for.
For example, on the topic of what kind of research I could possibly provide guidance for.
🧵 Ep4 of The Property Pod: Would you expect that informing tenants about hot water usage could lead to much broader savings?
University of Zurich economist Harald Mayr (@haraldmayr.com) explores behavioral interventions in energy conservation.
1/2➡️
University of Zurich economist Harald Mayr (@haraldmayr.com) explores behavioral interventions in energy conservation.
1/2➡️
August 27, 2025 at 3:34 PM
🧵 Ep4 of The Property Pod: Would you expect that informing tenants about hot water usage could lead to much broader savings?
University of Zurich economist Harald Mayr (@haraldmayr.com) explores behavioral interventions in energy conservation.
1/2➡️
University of Zurich economist Harald Mayr (@haraldmayr.com) explores behavioral interventions in energy conservation.
1/2➡️
I haven't read the paper, but it seems fair to say the common ownership literature has quite powerful enemies by now. capmktsreg.org/wp-content/u...
August 20, 2025 at 7:15 AM
I haven't read the paper, but it seems fair to say the common ownership literature has quite powerful enemies by now. capmktsreg.org/wp-content/u...
🧵 Should carbon emitted today count the same as carbon emitted decades from now? Episode 3 of our @OxfordFORE podcast, The Property Pod, explores this question with Oxford D.Phil candidate Jimmy Jia. (Spotify t.ly/4uNje , YT t.ly/SyBBb) 1/3➡️
July 9, 2025 at 7:19 PM
🧵 Should carbon emitted today count the same as carbon emitted decades from now? Episode 3 of our @OxfordFORE podcast, The Property Pod, explores this question with Oxford D.Phil candidate Jimmy Jia. (Spotify t.ly/4uNje , YT t.ly/SyBBb) 1/3➡️
Now an asset manager says roughly what I said it five years ago. viewfromoxford.com/regulation-i...
July 2, 2025 at 7:15 AM
Now an asset manager says roughly what I said it five years ago. viewfromoxford.com/regulation-i...
There's rather a contrast between what I read in the news -- e.g. the below -- and what the asset managers tell the competition authorities (e.g. "we are not seeing engagement at all on competition issues").
And to the FTC's guidance on solely-for-investment. www.ftc.gov/enforcement/...
And to the FTC's guidance on solely-for-investment. www.ftc.gov/enforcement/...
June 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM
There's rather a contrast between what I read in the news -- e.g. the below -- and what the asset managers tell the competition authorities (e.g. "we are not seeing engagement at all on competition issues").
And to the FTC's guidance on solely-for-investment. www.ftc.gov/enforcement/...
And to the FTC's guidance on solely-for-investment. www.ftc.gov/enforcement/...
Pilots, please don't use ChatGPT for performance calculations.
June 19, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Pilots, please don't use ChatGPT for performance calculations.
Reading these side by side is a bit painful
June 12, 2025 at 7:06 AM
Reading these side by side is a bit painful
How does wildfire risk get priced into real estate? Find out in Ep 2 of The Property Pod (Spotify t.ly/1cbeV , YT t.ly/w6iio) about a paper by Dr. Cloé Garnache, who is a lecturer at our Oxford Future of Real Estate Initiative. 1/2➡️
#wildfires #realestate
#wildfires #realestate
May 31, 2025 at 8:05 AM
How does wildfire risk get priced into real estate? Find out in Ep 2 of The Property Pod (Spotify t.ly/1cbeV , YT t.ly/w6iio) about a paper by Dr. Cloé Garnache, who is a lecturer at our Oxford Future of Real Estate Initiative. 1/2➡️
#wildfires #realestate
#wildfires #realestate
In security design, we often make the assumption that all securities have to be weakly monotonically "increasing": securities should pay no less when the underlying firm is doing better, because you'd create funky incentives otherwise.
No better illustration than this Man United bond.
No better illustration than this Man United bond.
May 28, 2025 at 3:34 PM
In security design, we often make the assumption that all securities have to be weakly monotonically "increasing": securities should pay no less when the underlying firm is doing better, because you'd create funky incentives otherwise.
No better illustration than this Man United bond.
No better illustration than this Man United bond.
How do home prices influence entrepreneurship?
Find out in Episode 1 of our real estate podcast, The Property Pod
(Spotify t.ly/xNtFR , YT t.ly/3r2NO)
It discusses our Journal of Finance paper with David Sraer and David Thesmar🔗https://t.ly/REqNz
Find out in Episode 1 of our real estate podcast, The Property Pod
(Spotify t.ly/xNtFR , YT t.ly/3r2NO)
It discusses our Journal of Finance paper with David Sraer and David Thesmar🔗https://t.ly/REqNz
May 24, 2025 at 8:10 AM
How do home prices influence entrepreneurship?
Find out in Episode 1 of our real estate podcast, The Property Pod
(Spotify t.ly/xNtFR , YT t.ly/3r2NO)
It discusses our Journal of Finance paper with David Sraer and David Thesmar🔗https://t.ly/REqNz
Find out in Episode 1 of our real estate podcast, The Property Pod
(Spotify t.ly/xNtFR , YT t.ly/3r2NO)
It discusses our Journal of Finance paper with David Sraer and David Thesmar🔗https://t.ly/REqNz
Two weeks ago, a journalist told me BlackRock says the common ownership "theory" was dead. [Then why do they still run the campaign against it? I wondered.]
Now, the U.S. reminds BlackRock that anticompetitive effects of common ownership don't become legal when in the name of ESG.
Now, the U.S. reminds BlackRock that anticompetitive effects of common ownership don't become legal when in the name of ESG.
May 23, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Two weeks ago, a journalist told me BlackRock says the common ownership "theory" was dead. [Then why do they still run the campaign against it? I wondered.]
Now, the U.S. reminds BlackRock that anticompetitive effects of common ownership don't become legal when in the name of ESG.
Now, the U.S. reminds BlackRock that anticompetitive effects of common ownership don't become legal when in the name of ESG.
We've just launched a podcast at Oxford Future of Real Estate Initiative, called The Property Pod! It will be a mix of talks about research and practice in real estate and AI-voiced breakdowns of academic papers. Listen on:
Spotify t.ly/GJyjZ
Youtube t.ly/Jo51P
Spotify t.ly/GJyjZ
Youtube t.ly/Jo51P
May 22, 2025 at 1:05 PM
We've just launched a podcast at Oxford Future of Real Estate Initiative, called The Property Pod! It will be a mix of talks about research and practice in real estate and AI-voiced breakdowns of academic papers. Listen on:
Spotify t.ly/GJyjZ
Youtube t.ly/Jo51P
Spotify t.ly/GJyjZ
Youtube t.ly/Jo51P
Second, <12 % of 2023 deregistering firms had audited a public issuer in prior 3 yrs → most exits shed not active capacity.
The chart shows the share of firms that have signed a recent opinion among the deregistered ones. 8/10➡️
The chart shows the share of firms that have signed a recent opinion among the deregistered ones. 8/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Second, <12 % of 2023 deregistering firms had audited a public issuer in prior 3 yrs → most exits shed not active capacity.
The chart shows the share of firms that have signed a recent opinion among the deregistered ones. 8/10➡️
The chart shows the share of firms that have signed a recent opinion among the deregistered ones. 8/10➡️
Registry shock: registrations of auditors with PCAOB peaked at 1,490 in 2010 but are down to 743. Headline: exits > entries every year since 2011 📉. Does it mean audit capacity has decreased? There is a hidden twist 6/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Registry shock: registrations of auditors with PCAOB peaked at 1,490 in 2010 but are down to 743. Headline: exits > entries every year since 2011 📉. Does it mean audit capacity has decreased? There is a hidden twist 6/10➡️
Switching: Big 4's client churn plunged from ~10 % of clients per year in 2003 to <3 % in 2022 (1st pic). Meanwhile 12–18 % of small-firm clients still switch annually, mostly to other small auditors (2nd pic). Relationships are locking in at the top, but remain restless for smaller auditors 5/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Switching: Big 4's client churn plunged from ~10 % of clients per year in 2003 to <3 % in 2022 (1st pic). Meanwhile 12–18 % of small-firm clients still switch annually, mostly to other small auditors (2nd pic). Relationships are locking in at the top, but remain restless for smaller auditors 5/10➡️
On the OTC market, small firms now audit the vast majority of issuers. There the Big 4’s issuer share has 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑝𝑠𝑒𝑑 to <10% (1st pic) and their fee share dropped from 74% to 54% (2nd pic) 4/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:50 AM
On the OTC market, small firms now audit the vast majority of issuers. There the Big 4’s issuer share has 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑝𝑠𝑒𝑑 to <10% (1st pic) and their fee share dropped from 74% to 54% (2nd pic) 4/10➡️
On Nasdaq, Big 4's issuer share slid from 73 % to 53 % — Mid 2 (BDO & Grant Thornton, orange) & small firms (grey) are moving up 3/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:49 AM
On Nasdaq, Big 4's issuer share slid from 73 % to 53 % — Mid 2 (BDO & Grant Thornton, orange) & small firms (grey) are moving up 3/10➡️
In our new paper "The Landscape of Auditing in U.S. Capital Markets" 🔗https://t.ly/KO2-m, we looked into 14k firms & 2.4k auditors. Big 4 (blue) still earn 91 % of all audit fees, so the $$ remain concentrated.
But the share of companies they audit is different 2/10➡️
But the share of companies they audit is different 2/10➡️
May 21, 2025 at 9:49 AM
In our new paper "The Landscape of Auditing in U.S. Capital Markets" 🔗https://t.ly/KO2-m, we looked into 14k firms & 2.4k auditors. Big 4 (blue) still earn 91 % of all audit fees, so the $$ remain concentrated.
But the share of companies they audit is different 2/10➡️
But the share of companies they audit is different 2/10➡️
Quote from Guy Spier's Education of a Value Investor:
"As Warren [Buffett] helped me to understand, people too often justify their improper or misguided actions by reassuring themselves that everyone else is doing it too."
Meanwhile, Warren Buffett:
"As Warren [Buffett] helped me to understand, people too often justify their improper or misguided actions by reassuring themselves that everyone else is doing it too."
Meanwhile, Warren Buffett:
May 15, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Quote from Guy Spier's Education of a Value Investor:
"As Warren [Buffett] helped me to understand, people too often justify their improper or misguided actions by reassuring themselves that everyone else is doing it too."
Meanwhile, Warren Buffett:
"As Warren [Buffett] helped me to understand, people too often justify their improper or misguided actions by reassuring themselves that everyone else is doing it too."
Meanwhile, Warren Buffett: