Abstract
The Panel on Household Finances (PHF) has established itself as one of the leading sources of microdata on households’ wealth in Germany since its inception in 2010. Over the last ten years, more than 7,583 households have participated in the surveys in 2010–11, 2014 and 2017, many of them taking part more than once (3,734 households). This paper provides an overview of the contents, main methodological aspects and use of the PHF data. It also highlights differences to other surveys and addresses how the survey may develop in the future.
Acknowledgment
The authors would like to thank the former head of the PHF project Ulf von Kalckreuth and Martin Eisele for their contributions to the success of Wave 1 of the PHF. We also thank all members of the Household Finance and Consumption Network for their valuable comments and suggestions on how to design wealth surveys. This paper represents the authors’ personal opinions and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Deutsche Bundesbank, the Eurosystem or its staff.
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