Working Paper
Time-Consistent Individuals, Time-Inconsistent Households
WP 26-20 – I model financial decision-making for multiperson households where members care for each other but make independent decisions. I show that the household saves less than optimal. Separate savings accounts may limit the undersaving problem.
Featured Work
Report
Do Recent Auto Loan Delinquency Rates Overstate Borrower Distress?
Headlines about record-high auto loan delinquencies paint a worrying picture of American consumers under increasing financial strain. But how much of that picture reflects a genuine increase in distress — and how much reflects how we measure it?
Working Paper
Building Credit Histories
WP 26-17 – If a credit history is necessary to get credit, and credit is needed to build a credit history, where does this leave new borrowers? This paper explores how lenders may look beyond repayment history to give new borrowers access to credit.
Working Paper
Does Experience Matter? Past Fraud Exposure, Data Compromises, and Credit Market Behavior
WP 26-10 – We study how past experiences with fraud affect individuals’ likelihood of taking precautionary action in credit markets when faced with a new shock that raises their fraud risks.
Featured Data
CFI COVID-19 Survey of Consumers
To gain insights into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on financial security in the U.S., the Consumer Finance Institute at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia conducted a series of national surveys of consumers beginning in April 2020 and concluding in April 2022.
Updated: 30 May ’23
Philadelphia’s History of Racially Restricted Housing
As part of the Philadelphia Fed’s efforts to understand how housing affects the economy in our District, our researchers are studying the links between past housing discrimination and present-day outcomes.
Updated: 20 Feb ’24