TY  - JOUR
AU  - Kopczuk,Wojciech
AU  - Lupton,Joseph
TI  - To Leave or Not To Leave: The Distribution of Bequest Motives
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 11767
PY  - 2005
Y2  - November 2005
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w11767
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w11767.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Wojciech Kopczuk
Columbia University
420 West 118th Street, Rm. 1022 IAB
MC 3323
New York, NY  10027
Tel: 212/854-2519
Fax: 212/864-8059
E-Mail: wk2110@columbia.edu

Joseph Lupton
E-Mail: joseph.p.lupton@frb.gov
AB  - In this paper, we examine the effect of observed and unobserved heterogeneity in the desire to die with positive net worth. Using a structural life-cycle model nested in a switching regression with unknown sample separation, we find that roughly three-fourths of the elderly single population has a bequest motive that may or may not have an appreciable effect on spending depending on the level of resources. Both the presence and the magnitude of the bequest motive are statistically and economically significant. On average, households with a bequest motive spend about 25 percent less on consumption expenditures. We conclude that, among the elderly single households in our sample, about four-fifths of their net wealth will be bequeathed and approximately half of this is due to a bequest motive.
ER  -