UM08-24: The Impact of Social Security Benefits on Household Life Cycle Asset Allocation and Asset Location
Researchers
Abstract
We derive the optimal portfolio choice and consumption pattern over the lifecycle for households facing labor income, capital market, and mortality risk. In addition to stocks and bonds, households also have access to deferred annuities. Deferred annuities offer a hedge against mortality risk and provide similar benefits as Social Security. We show that a considerable fraction of wealth should be annuitized to skim the return enhancing mortality credit. The remaining liquid wealth (stocks and bonds) is used to hedge labor income risk during work life and to earn the equity premium. We find a marginal difference between a strategy involving deferred annuities and one where the investor can purchase immediate life annuities.
Publications
- Asset Allocation and Location over the Lifecycle with Survival-Contingent Payouts (Research Brief)
- Deferred Annuities and Strategic Asset Allocation (Research Brief)
- Asset Allocation and Location over the Life Cycle with Survival-Contingent Payouts (Working Paper)
- Deferred Annuities and Strategic Asset Allocation (Working Paper)