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ACCOUNTING FOR LIFE-CYCLE WEALTH ACCUMULATION: THE ROLE OF HOUSING INSTITUTION

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 January 2011

Sang-Wook (Stanley) Cho*
Affiliation:
University of New South Wales
*
Address correspondence to: Sang-Wook (Stanley) Cho, School of Economics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; e-mail: s.cho@unsw.edu.au.

Abstract

This paper constructs a quantitative general equilibrium life-cycle model with uninsurable labor income to account for the differences in wealth accumulation and homeownership between Korea and the United States. The model incorporates different structures in the housing market in the two countries, namely, the mortgage market and the rental arrangements. The results from the calibrated model quantitatively explain some empirical findings in the aggregate and life-cycle profiles of wealth and homeownership. Quantitative policy experiments show that the mortgage market alone can account for more than 40% of the differences in the aggregate homeownership ratios. When coupled with the rental arrangements, both institutions can account for approximately 52% of the differences in the cross-country homeownership ratios.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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