rate mortgages ranges from less than 20 % in france and germany to more than 80 % in luxembourg, the netherlands, portugal and slovakia ( see ehrmann and ziegelmeyer ( 2013 ) ). the great variety of households revealed by household - level data stands in sharp contrast to the stark representation of consumers in many dsge models ( especially those of the first generation ), in which consumption smoothing or intertemporal substitution is typically governed by a single parameter that is often calibrated in an ad hoc manner. the experience of the great recession, in which individual households were subject to different income, interest rate and wealth shocks that generated responses that differed from those recorded in previous recessions, suggests that we should take household heterogeneity seriously. to conclude, the eurosystem ’ s household finance and consumption survey provides researchers with an invaluable source of information that will make it possible, by way of a cross - country perspective, to enhance our knowledge about the effects of specific monetary policy measures on the financial and economic decisions taken by households. thank you for your attention. for example, ehrmann and ziegelmeyer ( 2013 ) estimate that a 300 basis point cut in interest rates would result in a substantial reduction of the median debt - service burden, in particular for households in the lowest income quintile where the ratio of median debt service to income would otherwise have been 44 %, rather than the observed 32 %. bis central bankers ’ speeches references anderson, e., inoue, a. and rossi, b. ( 2013 ), “ heterogeneous consumers and fiscal policy shocks ”, cepr discussion papers, no 9631, centre for economic policy research. blundell, r., pistaferri, l. and preston, i. ( 2008 ), “ consumption inequality and partial insurance ”, american economic review, no 98 ( 5 ), pp. 1887 – 1921. blundell, r., pistaferri, l. and saporta - eksten, i. ( 2012 ), “ consumption inequality and family labor supply ”, nber working papers, no 18445, national bureau of economic research. broda, c. and parker, j. ( 2012 ), “ the economic stimulus payments of 2008 and the aggregate demand for consumption ”, mimeo, northwestern university. carroll, c., slacalek, j. and tokuoka, k. (

a better understanding of a wide variety of this type of data, from the considerations families face in making spending decisions ( including the costs of childcare ) to factors weighed by business owners in applying for loans and offering benefits to help attract top talent, all provide better insight into our data collection. these conversations help us to gain perspective on how americans in different areas of the country are faring. some of the issues discussed today may be unique to the seventh district, but certainly many 1 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches of these themes and dynamics are present throughout the country and across all 12 federal reserve districts. seeking out local perspectives is one of the great advantages of the federal reserve system's regional structure and of the fed listens structure in particular. earlier, i had the pleasure to meet each of the panelists you'll hear from today. their varied experiences and backgrounds across sectors lay an important foundation for today's discussion. we hope that our attendees will also join in to share your own observations as you experience these issues in your own lives, businesses, and communities. your perspective will help to inform our work as policymakers with the responsibility to promote a strong and vibrant economy for all americans. so with that, i would like to say, thank you again, austan, and especially to recognize your entire chicago fed team for hosting this fed listens event today and for the opportunity to be part of this discussion. without further ado, i am delighted to get our conversation started by turning things over to robin newberger, who is a policy advisor here at the chicago fed. 1 the views expressed here are my own and are not necessarily those of my colleagues on the federal reserve board or the federal open market committee. 2 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches