In Debt and Approaching Retirement: Claim Social Security or Work Longer?

Barbara Butrica and Nadia Karamcheva

AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2018, vol. 108, 401-06

Abstract: Over the past couple of decades, older Americans have become considerably more leveraged. This paper considers whether household debt affects the timing of retirement and Social Security benefit claiming. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, we find that older adults with debt are more likely to work and less likely to receive Social Security benefits than those who are debt-free. Indebted adults are also more likely to delay fully retiring from the labor force and claiming their benefits. Among the sources of debt, mortgages have a stronger impact on older adults' behavior than do other sources of debt.

JEL-codes: D14 H55 J14 J26 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
Note: DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20181116
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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