Which of these is a common application of general obligation bonds?

General obligation bonds are issued by municipalities to fund projects that serve the public good and are backed by the full faith and credit of the issuing government. This type of bond is primarily used to support public infrastructure projects, such as schools, roads, bridges, and parks. The issuance of general obligation bonds allows governments to raise capital for essential services and improvements that benefit the community at large, as they are typically repaid through tax revenues.

In the context of public finance, these bonds are attractive to investors because they are considered low-risk, given the backing of government funding through taxation. Furthermore, this form of financing plays a crucial role in enabling local governments to undertake large-scale projects that would otherwise be difficult to fund through regular budgets alone.

Other options do not align with the intended purpose of general obligation bonds. Funding private real estate projects involves private investments rather than public funding mechanisms like general obligation bonds. Financing corporate mergers and providing personal loans to citizens are activities that typically involve private financial instruments and do not leverage government resources in the same manner.