Publication: "Auctions with Frictions: Recruitment, Entry, and Limited Commitment" "Auctions with Frictions: Recruitment, Entry, and Limited Commitment"

Auction models are convenient abstractions of informal price-formation processesthat arise in markets for assets or services. These processes involve frictions like bid-der recruitment costs for sellers, participation costs for bidders, and limitations onsellers’ commitment abilities. This paper develops an auction model that capturessuch frictions. We derive novel insights, notably that outcomes are often inefficient,that markets sometimes unravel, and that the observability of competition may havea large effect.