Household debt, consumption and inequality

Household Debt and Consumption Inequality: The Spanish Case

The aim of this paper is twofold. On the one hand, we attempt to find out whether Spanish households took part in a process of substituting loans for wages during the period before the beginning of the current economic crisis. On the other hand, we try to identify the consequences of such process in the evolution of income and consumption inequalities. The theoretical framework to deal with the...

Income Inequality and Household Debt

Anticipated Changes in Household Debt and Consumption

This paper evaluates how anticipated changes in household debt associated with the leveraged purchase of housing a ects consumption. I build a heterogeneous agent model, calibrated to match the distribution of income and wealth within the US economy, in which households are subject to uninsurable income shocks and can save in both liquid and illiquid assets. I show that the marginal propensity ...

Household Debt and Aggregate Consumption Expenditures

This paper shows that the debt burden of households, as measured by the debt service to income ratio, is helpful in forecasting the future growth of consumption expenditures. Using data for the United States over the period 1960-97, I find a significant negative relationship between the debt-service ratio of households and future aggregate spending growth. This effect is statistically important...

Anticipated Changes in Household Debt and Consumption

This paper evaluates how anticipated changes in household debt associated with the leveraged purchase of housing a ects consumption. I build a heterogeneous agent model, calibrated to match the distribution of income and wealth within the US economy, in which households are subject to uninsurable income shocks and can save in both liquid and illiquid assets. I show that the marginal propensity ...