AEA Papers and Proceedings
ISSN 2574-0768 (Print) | ISSN 2574-0776 (Online)
The Harder They Fall: Diverging Black-White Wealth in Older Age Using the Health and Retirement Study
AEA Papers and Proceedings
(pp. 618–623)
Abstract
Using the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we document that wealthier Black households experience slower wealth accumulation compared to White households with similar, higher initial wealth. Racial wealth accumulation gaps widen racial disparities in wealth levels late in the life cycle and contribute to the intergenerational transmission of racial wealth inequality. These conditional racial accumulation gaps are robust to portfolio composition controls and pertain to a population facing little or no earnings risk. Our findings challenge standard portfolio-based or earnings-based theories of racial wealth inequality. We argue that racial differences in wealth downside risks can help understand these patterns.Citation
Zeida, Teegawende H., William A. Darity Jr., Samuel L. Myers Jr., and Illenin O. Kondo. 2026. "The Harder They Fall: Diverging Black-White Wealth in Older Age Using the Health and Retirement Study." AEA Papers and Proceedings 116: 618–623. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20261124Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D15 Intertemporal Household Choice; Life Cycle Models and Saving
- D31 Personal Income, Wealth, and Their Distributions
- G51 Household Finance: Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination