Savings and Bequests / Michael D. Hurd.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hurd, Michael D.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w1826.

NBER working paper series no. w1826

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 1986.

Summary:

Empirical studies have indicated that the elderly seem to accumulate wealth after retirement, and that the desire to leave bequests is an important determinent of saving behavior, both kinds of results have cast doubt on the validity of the life cycle hypothesis of consumption. In the first part of this paper, a model of bequests is specified, and the implications for consumption and wealth trajectories are derived. The main result is that, even with a bequest motive, consumption generally decreases with age after retirement, and that wealth will also decrease for all but wealthy households. In the empirical part of the paper, wealth changes of retired households are reported over 10 years of panel data. Contrary to many results from cross-section data, the elderly do dissave: over 10 years the wealth of the elderly in the sample decreases by about 27 real. A test for a bequest motive is proposed. There is no evidence whatsoever for abequest motive.

Notes:

Print version record

1986.