What are the implications of rising debt for older Americans?

What are the implications of rising debt for older Americans?

Collection:
Health Policy and Services Research
Series Title(s):
CRR WP
Author(s):
Chen, Anqi, author
Liu, Siyan, author
Munnell, Alicia Haydock, author
Contributor(s):
Boston College. Center for Retirement Research, issuing body.
Publication:
Chestnut Hill, MA : Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, September 2023
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Aged
Financing, Personal -- statistics & numerical data
Financing, Personal -- trends
United States
Genre(s):
Technical Report
Abstract:
The share of older Americans with debt has been on the rise in recent decades, raising concerns about their financial security in retirement. However, having debt does not always signal financial fragility, so understanding the distinctions in household debt is crucial to determining the implications of this trend. Using data from the Survey of Consumer Finances and Health and Retirement Study, this study identifies which older borrowers are at high risk and low risk of financial hardship, determines whether the growth in borrowing is driven by high- or low-risk households, and identifies different types of high-risk households. The results suggest that more than half of older borrowers are at high risk, and this group is driving the growth in debt holding. Four subgroups of high-risk borrowers stand out, each with different characteristics. Thus, no one-size-fits-all solution exists, so recognizing the diverse characteristics of high-risk borrowers is essential to developing effective policies to help them.
Copyright:
Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY license. (More information)
Extent:
1 online resource (1 PDF file (26 pages))
Illustrations:
Illustrations
NLM Unique ID:
9918750388306676 (See catalog record)
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/9918750388306676