Key Datasets

The gold standard for U.S. household wealth and balance sheet data. Collects detailed information on assets, liabilities, income, and demographics, with deliberate oversampling of wealthy households. Run by the Federal Reserve.

The longest-running longitudinal household survey in the world, tracking families and their descendants since 1968. Invaluable for studying wealth accumulation, intergenerational transmission, and life-cycle dynamics.

Annual Federal Reserve survey on household financial well-being, covering savings buffers, credit access, retirement preparation, housing, and economic resilience. Useful for tracking financial fragility and sentiment.

Monthly rotating panel from the NY Fed measuring consumer expectations about inflation, labor markets, credit access, and household finances. Particularly useful for eliciting beliefs and subjective probabilities. I used the SCE in my COVID-19 overconfidence research.

Longitudinal survey of Americans over 50, covering health, wealth, retirement, cognition, and end-of-life planning. The primary resource for studying retirement savings, drawdown behavior, and late-life financial decisions.

Loan-level data on nearly all U.S. mortgage applications — originations, denials, applicant demographics, loan terms, and lender identity. The most comprehensive public source for studying mortgage market access and fair lending.

A 5% random sample of U.S. credit bureau records from the New York Fed — covering credit scores, debt balances, delinquencies, and utilization across all major product types. Exceptionally large and high-frequency. See my field guide for practical advice on acquiring and using credit bureau data.

Public database of consumer complaints submitted to the CFPB across financial products and institutions, with company responses and resolution outcomes. A rich source for studying consumer protection, firm behavior, and financial redress — the subject of my ongoing work with Charlotte Haendler.