Is the current mix of tax preferences for employer-sponsored pensions and individual retirement saving in the U ….S. delivering the best possible retirement-preparedness across and within generations? Using data from the triennial Survey of … Consumer Finances for 1989 through 2013, cohort-based analysis of life-cycle trajectories shows that (1) overall retirement …

Although households have invested billions in 401(k) accounts, these balances may not be new saving if workers invest … saving by comparing changes in the wealth of 401(k) eligible and ineligible households over the 1989-1998 period using data … saving if eligible households have a higher taste for saving than ineligible households or if they begin the 1989-1998 period …

benefit pensions, life insurance, annuities, welfare payments, and future labor earnings. Abstracting from the uncertainty … given rise to a broad policy discussion of the adequacy of household retirement wealth. We construct a uniquely … consumption throughout retirement, taking as given expected lifetimes and current Social Security benefits. We find a median …

Some retirement plans allow the participant to choose how funds are invested. Having to direct investments may provide … chooses investments are significantly more apt to hold stock outside of their retirement plan than are households with pension … portfolio rebalancing or differences in income and saving preferences across households. This provides some evidence that the …

Because employer-provided pensions represent an important source of income during retirement, accurate information on … pension coverage would seem to be crucial for making sound decisions on retirement timing, saving, and portfolio allocation …

Many firms that sponsor traditional defined benefit pensions have converted their plans to cash balance plans in the …