The Korean Journal of Economic Studies
Wealth and Labor Market Transitions: A General Equilibrium Overlapping Generations Model with Housin
Weh-Sol Moon (Seoul Women’s University)Year 2015Vol. 63No. 2
Abstract
I construct a general equilibrium overlapping generations model with housingin which the labor supply decision is endogenous and financial wealth isdistinguished from housing wealth. Under the assumptions of incompletemarkets and idiosyncratic labor income risk, housing wealth and financialwealth have different effects on the individual labor market transitions. Usingthe artificial panel data obtained from the model, I estimate the effects offinancial wealth and housing wealth on the individual labor market transitionsbetween employment and nonemployment. I find that financial wealth has apositive effect on the transition probability from employment tononemployment, but housing wealth has a negative effect on the probability.With regard to the transition probability from nonemployment to employment,both financial wealth and housing wealth have negative impacts. I also showthat the model implications are consistent with the data from the Korean Laborand Income Panel Study.