Transaction costs

Transaction costs are those of Rights of disposal (z. B. ) develop for purchase, sales, rent. Those it means that with each transaction also transaction costs develop.

Transaction costs are the result of the limited Rationalitaet of the participants in combination with Opportunismus, complexity of the environment and specificity of the investments. The costs of a transaction depend on in which co-ordination form (see

• Provision of information costs (z. B. Information search over potenzielle transaction partners)
• Preparation costs (z.B. Establishment of contact)
• Agreement costs (z.B. Negotiations, formulation of contract, agreement)

Ex post office

• Completion costs (z. B. Broker's commission, transport costs)
• Control costs (z.B. Observance of date -, quality -, quantities -, price and secrecy arrangements, reduction of the supply)
• Change cost/adjustment costs (z.B. Date -, quality -, quantity and price adjustments)

One understands information more concretely by transaction costs searches -, preparation -, -, addition Negotiation -, decision -, agreement -, completion -, security -, Penetration -, control -, adjustment and completion costs.

Transaction costs develop for z.B., if between the persons taken part in a transaction communication need, communication problems, misunderstandings or conflicts arise.

Under transaction costs falls not the price of the property, as far as pure production costs are concerned.

The height of transaction costs can prevent a coming off of transactions, if for instance the initial information costs of a potenziellen buyer turn out so highly that the transaction is prohibitiv raised the price of. Also the existence prevents from transaction costs that buyers or salesmen find the attractive offer for them, since the transaction costs rising with the search counterbalance possible advantages of further offers again (theory of the removing Marginal yield).

Transaction costs as for instance addition or measuring costs can prevent even the existence of markets for certain goods. New information forms can lower these transaction costs (eBay, Wikipedia).

For its Transaction cost beginning, that Coase theorem received the US-American political economist that Nobelpreis for economic science.

Literature

• Williamson, olive. E. (1975): Markets and Hierarchies: Analysis and Antitrust Implications, New York.
• Williamson, olive E. (1990): The economic institutions of capitalism.
• North, Douglas C. (1998): Institutions, institutional change and restaurant economics.