We examine the effects of decreasing down payment requirements on consumption volatility within a model which generalizes the standard buffer-stock model of saving to accommodate durables, nondurables and a collateralized liquidity constraint. We consider both a version of the model without...

We argue that the equation commonly used in the estimation of the wealth effect on consumption might be unsuitable for that purpose. In particular, if the usual assumptions are employed, the derivation of the equation implies that the wealth effect is indeterminate. Furthermore, it implies that...

Existing studies differ significantly on how much terms of trade shocks contribute to output fluctuations. Empirical studies based on VAR analysis find that terms of trade shocks explain less than 10% of output fluctuations while results from calibrated DSGE models suggest a figure of more than...