Household Portfolios in Germany

This paper describes portfolio choices of German households in the 1980's and 1990's. We present stylized facts and analyze recent trends of asset ownership rates and asset shares on the basis of national accounts and survey data. We correlate socio-demographic household characteristics with asset shares and ownership, and analyze how German households have adjusted their asset portfolios in response to the policy changes during this time. A particular focus is on the effects of German reunification and the portfolio adjustments of East German households during the transition process.