A Primer on the Dynamic Simulation of Income Model (DYNASIM3)

This primer provides an overview of the Urban Institute's Dynamic Simulation of Income Model (DYNASIM3). DYNASIM3 is a dynamic microsimulation model that projects the population and analyzes the long-run distributional consequences of retirement and aging issues. The model starts with a representative sample of individuals and families and ages the data year by year, simulating demographic and economic events including all of the key components of retirement incomes. The model has been used recently to examine the long-term consequences of recent patterns of savings and earnings inequality and to simulate potential changes in Social Security benefits.