Americans' indebtedness increased dramatically since the 1980s — a trend likely to have important implications for retirement security. On one hand, higher indebtedness might compel individuals to keep working and delay Social Security benefit claiming so they can pay off their financial...

Much of the disagreement as to whether households are adequately prepared for retirement reflects differences in assumptions regarding the extent to which consumption declines when the kids leave home. If consumption declines substantially when the kids leave home, as some life-cycle models of...