Debt and Domestic Violence

Mortgages represent that largest liability most households ever have.  We show that interest rate shocks are associated with higher rates of domestic violence in the U.S.  We propose two possible mechanisms for this finding.  First, higher interest rates lead to mortgage stress for households with adjustable-rate mortgages, triggering conflict and violence.  Second, for households with long-term fixed rate mortgages, higher interest rates leads to mortgage lock-in: Households are locked-in to lower rates in their current residence thereby reducing mobility and increasing exposure to abusers. Our findings are economically meaningful and plausibility exogenous under a variety of settings.

Phong Ngo is an Associate Professor with the Research School of Finance, Actuarial Studies and Statistics which is part of The College of Business and Economics at The Australian National University.  His research theme is "Finance and Society" and so he has an interest in doing financial research that is of policy and social relevance. His papers span an eclectic mix of topics which include banking, political economy & the role of government, household finance, gender & the economy, media and labour & migration and have been published in leading journals such as the Journal of Financial Economics, Review of Financial Studies and Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis.