Research

Economic Quarterly

Spring 2005

Equilibrium Models of Personal Bankruptcy: A Survey

Kartik B. Athreya

Our Research Focus: Consumer Finance

Topics: Bankruptcy, Consumer Finance

A comparison of models and results from selected papers on personal bankruptcy establishes how particular modeling assumptions matter for the implications of bankruptcy. For example, it can be argued that only under income processes that allow for large shocks to net worth can bankruptcy play a role in improving welfare. However, despite the progress evident from the work so far, questions remain, the resolution of which is critical to forming a definitive view of the role for personal default.

View Full Article

Contact Us

Richmond

Amanda L. Kramer
(804) 697-8606

Order Publications
subscriptions

Order single copies or subscribe to Economic Quarterly and other publications from the Federal Reserve System.