Think of a guy who is anxious that his hacienda in Miami might be caught in a bubble but doesn't want to cash out and move. If he buys a put option on the Miami housing-price index and the value of homes in Miami (including his) slides, the money he makes on the derivative offsets his loss. A put option is the right, but not the obligation, to sell a security at a set price. A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell something at a future date. Both are derivatives because they derive their value from an underlying asset, in this case, real estate. The notional value of the futures contract is about $50,000 and is bought on margin with just a few percent down, which means you can get badly burned. Since the May debut, developers and hedge funds are among the big buyers.
Tags:
Asset
Miami Housing
Hedge Funds
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