State-contingent rent reduction and tenancy contract choice

This study introduces a fixed-rent contract with a state-contingent rent reduction widely adopted in Japan in the early 20th century, which a fixed-rent was temporary reduced in case of poor harvest. The economic implications of this contract are analyzed with a principal-agent model. It is shown that if the tenant is not too risk averse and/or the variability of the yield is not too high, then this contract is preferable for the landlord to a fixed-rent contract or a share tenancy. Preliminary tests on the risk-sharing implication of a share contract are also provided using the historical data for Japan and Korea.