A finite-life private-information theory of unsecured consumer debt

Finite-Life Private Information Theory of Unsecured Debt

Working Paper No. 07-14 a Finite-life Private-information Theory of Unsecured Consumer Debt

We present a theory of unsecured consumer debt that does not rely on utility costs of default or on enforcement mechanisms that arise in repeated-interaction settings. The theory is based on private information about a person’s type and on a person’s incentive to signal his type to entities other than creditors. Specifically, debtors signal their low-risk status to insurers by avoiding default ...

A Finite-Life Private-Information Theory of Unsecured Debt

We present a theory of unsecured consumer debt that recognizes a debtor’s legal right to default. Our theory does not rely on psychological costs of default (or stigma) nor does it rely on enforcement mechanisms that arise in repeated-game settings. Our theory is based on private information about a person’s type and on a person’s incentive to signal his type by avoiding default in the credit m...

Unsecured consumer debt and mental health outcomes in middle-aged and older Americans.

OBJECTIVES Unsecured consumer debt may affect well-being negatively. We evaluated the association between unsecured debt and two distinct outcomes: depressive symptomatology and psychological well-being. METHOD Data were obtained from the 2006 Health and Retirement Study. There were 5,817 adults aged ≥ 51 who responded to a core survey and psychosocial leave-behind questionnaire. Depressive s...

Further Remarks On Walras' Law And Nonoptimal Equilibria

The objective of this note is to show that the positively valued excess supplies which Aiyagari (1992) connects with Pareto inefficiency for overlapping generations economies represent an economic opportunity that can potentially be exploited by government or by a private financial intermediary through the issuance of unsecured debt. We demonstrate that, when unsecured debt is issued, Walras’ L...