Working Paper
To leave or not to leave: the distribution of bequest motives
Lupton, Joseph P.; Kopczuk, Wojciech (2004)
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 70 percent of the elderly single population has a bequest motive that may or may not be active depending on the level of resources at a given age. Both the presence and the magnitude of the bequest motive are statistically and economically significant. All else being equal, households with an operative bequest motive spend between $4,000 and $9,000 a ...
Finance and Economics Discussion Series , Paper 2004-33