Exam 20: Uncertainty and Information

-Nancy's utility of wealth curve is given in the above figure. She is faced with a risky proposition which yields an income of $50 one-third of the time, $100 one-third of the time, and $150 one-third of the time. Her expected utility is

Suppose that there are only two types of used cars, peaches and lemons and that used cars are pure experience goods. Peaches are worth $10,000, and lemons are worth $6,000. Three fourths of all used cars are peaches, and one fourth are lemons. In a market with no signals, for instance, a market without warranties, the average value of cars actually sold will be

-Lucy works as a college instructor for a fixed annual salary of $30,000. She is considering quitting this job and becoming a real estate broker. Lucy believes that as a realtor she has a 40 percent chance to make $60,000 per year and a 60 percent chance to make $25,000 a year. The figure above shows Lucy's total utility of wealth curve (U). Lucy will decide to ________ and she will definitely make this choice because it gives her a greater expected ________.

-James has a utility of wealth schedule in the above table. He is offered a job selling video games at Games Galore. James' compensation depends on how much he sells. In a poor sales period, a salesperson makes $100 per month. In a good sales period, a salesperson makes $600 per month. James is told by the manager that, in any given month, there is a 25 percent chance of a poor sales period and a 75 percent chance of a good sales period. What is James' expected income from taking this job?

-Steve owns a motorcycle valued at $5,000, and that is his only asset. There is a 5 percent chance that Steve will have an accident within a year. If he does have an accident, his motorcycle is worthless. Steve's utility of wealth curve is shown in the figure above. An insurance company agrees to pay Steve the full value of his motorcycle in case of an accident if he buys the company's insurance policy. The company's operating expenses are $500 per policy. With no insurance, Steve's expected utility is

If buyers cannot assess the quality of used cars but there are warranties for cars,

Bill purchases property insurance for his office building, which includes coverage for fire damage. The policy offers premium discounts for smoke detectors, fire alarms, fire extinguishers and sprinkler systems. This is an incentive system to help avoid

-The above figure shows how an individual evaluates a bet in which he or she has a 0.5 probability of receiving $20 and a 0.5 probability of receiving $200. The individual would be indifferent between

Insurance can be profitable when it

What does it mean to be risk averse?

As more information is gather, the marginal cost of additional information ________ and the marginal benefit of additional information ________.

You took a job as a salesperson in an insurance company with the knowledge that you have 0.5 chance of making $2,000 a month or $3,000 a month. How much will you make each month?

The International Maritime Bureau said the waters off Somalia are the world's most dangerous, accounting for nearly a third reported pirate attacks worldwide. Suppose all boats are insured to $100,000 and pay a premium of $10,000 each. Suppose 10 out of 100 boats are attacked by pirates and these 10 file claims with their insurance. What is the value of the claims?

Suppose that there are only two types of used cars, peaches and lemons. Peaches are worth $10,000, and lemons are worth $4,000. If the market is such that only lemons are sold, then used cars are

-John's utility of wealth curve is shown in the above figure. He currently has wealth of $20,000, and there is a 25 percent chance that he could lose it all. If an insurance company offers to insure against this loss for $6,000, John will

Buying insurance is similar to

-John's utility of wealth curve is shown in the above figure. He currently has wealth of $20,000. If the state lottery offers a 1 in 10,000 chance of winning $10,000, John will

-The above figure shows the utility of wealth curve for a homeowner whose only possession is a $50,000 house. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

Mortgage insurance protects lenders when a borrower defaults by making up any shortfall needed to repay the loan if the sale of the property doesn't cover the debt. Federally regulated lenders must have mortgage insurance on loans where the buyer's down payment is less than 20 per cent of the price. This can partially prevent ________.

The cost of risk is the same for everyone.