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The Price Effects of Bidding Conspiracies: Evidence from Real Estate Auction “Knockouts”

Inherent incentives for cheating and the difficulty of determining the alternative "competitive" price have led some to doubt the significance of price effects from bidding conspiracies. This article analyzes a very effective and longlasting conspiracy among bidders in auction markets for real estate in Washington, DC. The conspiracy in question operated for 15 years and affected auctions of hundreds of properties. Publicly available data analyzed in this article suggest an average price effect of about 32%.