Little attention has been given to the behavior of option portfolio risk across different portfolio sizes, perhaps because many individuals view unhedged long option positions as too risky for rational investor consideration. It appears possible, however, to combine long option positions with less risky assets to produce portfolios with favorable risk-return characteristics [10].

In the last few years, several innovations have appeared in mortgage finance which are designed to improve the flow of funds into mortgage lending. Among this group, The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) remains the intermediary which handles the largest share of most mortgage lenders' placements. As a private corporation chartered by Congress and owned by stockholders, FNMA provides a national secondary market facility for government-backed (FHA/VA) and conventional mortgages. Through its secondary market operations, FNMA furnishes a source of liquidity for mortgage lenders with the major portion of this support provided through the Free Market System (FMS) auctions. Through its issuance of forward purchase commitments, the FNMA assures lenders of a permanent investor (at a set yield) for specified periods of time, regardless of changing money market and housing conditions.

The purpose of this note is to examine, theoretically, why the market risk premium (R^_ g\ raa y influence tests of asset pricing models with higher moments. When moments of higher order than the variance are added to a pricing model developed within the usual two-fund separation assump- tions, the market risk premium enters the pricing equation in a nonlinear fashion and is implicit in the estimation of each moment's coefficient.

The purpose of this note is to examine, theoretically, why the market risk premium (R^_ g\ raa y influence tests of asset pricing models with higher moments.When moments of higher order than the variance are added to a pricing model developed within the usual two-fund separation assump- tions, the market risk premium enters the pricing equation in a nonlinear fashion and is implicit in the estimation of each moment's coefficient.Unless this nonlinearity is recognized, incorrect conclusions regarding the tests of such models may result.