Intergenerational Redistribution in the Great Recession
Abstract
In this paper we construct a stochastic overlapping-generations general equilibrium model in which households are subject to aggregate shocks that affect both wages and asset prices. We use a calibrated version of the model to quantify how the welfare costs of severe recessions are distributed across diffrrent household age groups. The model predicts that younger cohorts fare better than older cohorts when the equilibrium decline in asset prices is large relative to the decline in wages, as observed in the data. Asset price declines hurt the old, who rely on asset sales to finance consumption, but benefit the young, who purchase assets at depressed prices. In our preferred calibration, asset prices decline more than twice as much as wages, consistent with the experience of the US economy in the Great Recession. A model recession is approximately welfare-neutral for households in the 20-29 age group, but translates into a large welfare loss of around 10% of lifetime consumption for households aged 70 and over.Download Info
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Bibliographic Info
Paper provided by C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers in its series CEPR Discussion Papers with number 8329.Length:
Date of creation: Apr 2011
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Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:8329
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Related research
Keywords: Aggregate Risk; Asset Prices; Overlapping Generations; Recessions;Other versions of this item:
- Andrew Glover & Jonathan Heathcote & Dirk Krueger & José-Víctor Ríos-Rull, 2011. "Intergenerational redistribution in the Great Recession," Working Papers 684, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
- Andrew Glover & Jonathan Heathcote & Dirk Krueger & José-Víctor Ríos-Rull, 2011. "Intergenerational Redistribution in the Great Recession," NBER Working Papers 16924, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
- Jose-Victor Rios Rull & Jonathan Heathcote & Dirk Krueger & Andy Glover, 2011. "Intergenerational Redistribution in the Great Recession," 2011 Meeting Papers 141, Society for Economic Dynamics.
- D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
- D58 - Microeconomics - - General Equilibrium and Disequilibrium - - - Computable and Other Applied General Equilibrium Models
- D91 - Microeconomics - - Intertemporal Choice and Growth - - - Intertemporal Consumer Choice; Life Cycle Models and Saving
- E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomics: Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
References
References listed on IDEASPlease report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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Citations
Blog mentions
As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:- Intergenerational Redistribution in the Great Recession
by Christian Zimmermann in NEP-DGE blog on 2011-04-17 21:10:59
Cited by:
- Sule Alan & Thomas Crossley & Hamish Low, 2012.
"Saving on a Rainy Day, Borrowing for a Rainy Day,"
Koç University-TUSIAD Economic Research Forum Working Papers
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- Yanbin Chen & Fangxing Li & Zhesheng Qiu, 2013. "Housing and Saving with Finance Imperfection," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 14(1), pages 219-262, May.
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