This brief explores how the shift from defined benefit to defined contribution pension plans might affect bequests and thereby consumption and saving. Bequests can occur under two different types of circumstances: (1) individuals plan to leave an inheritance for their heirs (an intended...

The National Retirement Risk Index (NRRI) measures the percentage of working-age households who are ‘at risk’ of being financially unprepared for retirement today and in coming decades. The calculations show that even if households work to age 65 and annuitize all their financial assets,...

Since the mid-1960s, the median retirement age for men has declined from 66 to 63. If Americans continue to retire at age 63, a great many will risk income shortfalls, especially at older ages. This risk is even greater for those currently nearing retirement who have recently seen a large...

The National Retirement Risk Index has shown that even if households work to age 65 and annuitize all their financial assets, including the receipts from reverse mortgages on their homes, 44 percent will be ‘at risk’ of being unable to maintain their standard of living in retirement. More...

With increasing pressure on the nation’s retirement systems, questions about how long people stay in the labor force and why they decide to retire are of great importance. The big unknown going forward is whether the contraction of the retirement income system will cause workers to continue...

The difference in labor force participation rates of men aged 55-64 across the United States is astounding. For example, West Virginia has a participation rate below 60 percent, while South Dakota has a participation rate approaching 90 percent (see Figure 1). This fact in itself has significant...

House prices rose 60 percent between 2000 and 2007 before the housing bubble burst. The question is whether the housing boom made people better or worse prepared for retirement. If they extracted the equity from their home through some form of housing-related debt and consumed all their...