{"id":{"repo_id":"kennesaw","oai_identifier":"oai:digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu:etd-1636"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/kennesaw/oai:digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu:etd-1636","repository":{"repo_id":"kennesaw","name":"Kennesaw State University","base_url":"https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/do/oai/"},"display":{"title":"Essays on Motivating Investment","abstract":"<p>Essay 1</p> <p>This research examines the relationship between Real Estate Investment Trusts‘ uses of the audit process to increase financial transparency, and their ability to attract and/or maintain reasonable access to capital investment. I find that capital investment is positively and significantly associated with three commonly used audit-related attributes: auditor quality (captured by higher audit fees), auditor specialization (captured by industry-audit specialization), and auditor reputation (captured by the audit firm being a Big 4 auditor). Moreover, I find the positive relationship between capital issuance and auditor fees remains after controlling for the financial crisis of 2007-2008. This positive association between the use of audit fees as a means of signaling transparency and capital investment after the crisis offers a possible strategy for firms seeking capital investment during periods of high capital market illiquidity resulting from a severe external shock to the financial markets. </p> <p>Essay 2</p> <p>Challenging real estate market conditions present highly motivated sellers with a difficult trade-off between lowering list price, and offering sales incentives to attract buyers. Research suggests that under-pricing may not prove effective, while empirical investigations of seller-paid sales incentives have yielded mixed results. This study extends the literature by investigating seller-paid incentives offered to buyers, buyers‘ agents, and/or both. I find a positive association between: (1) the likelihood of sellers offering buyer sales incentives and higher real estate asset bid-ask spread; (2) the likelihood of sellers offering agent sales incentives and highly motivated sellers; (3) offering sales incentives and sales price; and (4) offering sales incentives and market duration.</p> <p><br /></p>","abstract_html":"&lt;p&gt;Essay 1&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;This research examines the relationship between Real Estate Investment Trusts‘ uses of the audit process to increase financial transparency, and their ability to attract and/or maintain reasonable access to capital investment. I find that capital investment is positively and significantly associated with three commonly used audit-related attributes: auditor quality (captured by higher audit fees), auditor specialization (captured by industry-audit specialization), and auditor reputation (captured by the audit firm being a Big 4 auditor). Moreover, I find the positive relationship between capital issuance and auditor fees remains after controlling for the financial crisis of 2007-2008. This positive association between the use of audit fees as a means of signaling transparency and capital investment after the crisis offers a possible strategy for firms seeking capital investment during periods of high capital market illiquidity resulting from a severe external shock to the financial markets. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Essay 2&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Challenging real estate market conditions present highly motivated sellers with a difficult trade-off between lowering list price, and offering sales incentives to attract buyers. Research suggests that under-pricing may not prove effective, while empirical investigations of seller-paid sales incentives have yielded mixed results. This study extends the literature by investigating seller-paid incentives offered to buyers, buyers‘ agents, and/or both. I find a positive association between: (1) the likelihood of sellers offering buyer sales incentives and higher real estate asset bid-ask spread; (2) the likelihood of sellers offering agent sales incentives and highly motivated sellers; (3) offering sales incentives and sales price; and (4) offering sales incentives and market duration.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Cummings, J. Reid"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Accountancy","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Gabriel G. Ramírez","Dr. Divesh S. Sharma","Dr. Xiao Huang"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2014,"date_issued":"2014-04-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2014-04-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:00Z","subjects":["real estate investment trusts","financial transparency","reit transparency","audit process","capital investment","Accounting","Business","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Finance and Financial Management"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/etd/628","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Gabriel G. Ramírez","Dr. Divesh S. Sharma","Dr. Xiao Huang"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Cummings, J. 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I find that capital investment is positively and significantly associated with three commonly used audit-related attributes: auditor quality (captured by higher audit fees), auditor specialization (captured by industry-audit specialization), and auditor reputation (captured by the audit firm being a Big 4 auditor). Moreover, I find the positive relationship between capital issuance and auditor fees remains after controlling for the financial crisis of 2007-2008. This positive association between the use of audit fees as a means of signaling transparency and capital investment after the crisis offers a possible strategy for firms seeking capital investment during periods of high capital market illiquidity resulting from a severe external shock to the financial markets. </p> <p>Essay 2</p> <p>Challenging real estate market conditions present highly motivated sellers with a difficult trade-off between lowering list price, and offering sales incentives to attract buyers. Research suggests that under-pricing may not prove effective, while empirical investigations of seller-paid sales incentives have yielded mixed results. This study extends the literature by investigating seller-paid incentives offered to buyers, buyers‘ agents, and/or both. I find a positive association between: (1) the likelihood of sellers offering buyer sales incentives and higher real estate asset bid-ask spread; (2) the likelihood of sellers offering agent sales incentives and highly motivated sellers; (3) offering sales incentives and sales price; and (4) offering sales incentives and market duration.</p> <p><br /></p>"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Essays on Motivating Investment"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Gabriel G. Ramírez","Dr. Divesh S. Sharma","Dr. Xiao Huang"],"dc:creator":["Cummings, J. Reid"],"dc:date.available":["2014-05-19T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["<p>Essay 1</p> <p>This research examines the relationship between Real Estate Investment Trusts‘ uses of the audit process to increase financial transparency, and their ability to attract and/or maintain reasonable access to capital investment. I find that capital investment is positively and significantly associated with three commonly used audit-related attributes: auditor quality (captured by higher audit fees), auditor specialization (captured by industry-audit specialization), and auditor reputation (captured by the audit firm being a Big 4 auditor). Moreover, I find the positive relationship between capital issuance and auditor fees remains after controlling for the financial crisis of 2007-2008. This positive association between the use of audit fees as a means of signaling transparency and capital investment after the crisis offers a possible strategy for firms seeking capital investment during periods of high capital market illiquidity resulting from a severe external shock to the financial markets. </p> <p>Essay 2</p> <p>Challenging real estate market conditions present highly motivated sellers with a difficult trade-off between lowering list price, and offering sales incentives to attract buyers. Research suggests that under-pricing may not prove effective, while empirical investigations of seller-paid sales incentives have yielded mixed results. This study extends the literature by investigating seller-paid incentives offered to buyers, buyers‘ agents, and/or both. I find a positive association between: (1) the likelihood of sellers offering buyer sales incentives and higher real estate asset bid-ask spread; (2) the likelihood of sellers offering agent sales incentives and highly motivated sellers; (3) offering sales incentives and sales price; and (4) offering sales incentives and market duration.</p> <p><br /></p>"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/etd/628"],"dc:subject":["real estate investment trusts","financial transparency","reit transparency","audit process","capital investment","Accounting","Business","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Finance and Financial Management"],"dc:title":["Essays on Motivating Investment"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Accountancy"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:43:00Z"}