Online Video Version of a Workshop on using VFI Toolkit originally taught at LSE in May 2025. Workshop introduces VFI Toolkit and shows how to solve a wide variety of Life-Cycle and OLG models. Emphasis is on getting going with codes and understanding what advanced features exist, as well as the concepts for how VFI Toolkit thinks about models. We will solve examples of everything listed below.
Recommended approach to using the materials: Watch the videos, you can get the slides in the videos and follow them alongside (blue text in slides are links; I correct typos in slides but not videos), play with the codes.
Any questions/comments, ask on forum: discourse.vfitoolkit.com

Day 1: Life-Cycle Models

• Part 0: Intro/Overview (video, slides)
• Part 1: Solve and analyse Basic Life-Cycle Models (video, slides, codes)
  • Decision variables, endogenous state, markov exogenous state.
  • Stationary distribution of agents.
  • Analyse model looking at stats and age-conditional stats.
• Part 2: Standard Life-Cycle Models (video, slides, codes)
  • i.i.d exogenous state
  • semi-exogenous state
  • Permanent types
• Part 3: Advanced Life-Cycle Models (codes)
  • Alternative preferences: Epstein-Zin preferences, Quasi-Hyperbolic discounting, Gul-Pesendorfer preferences, Loss Aversion, Ambiguity Aversion. (video, slides 3A)
  • Other endogenous states: two endogenous states, human capital, uncertain human capital, portfolio-choice. (video, slides 3B)
  • Calibration and GMM Estimation. (video, slides 3C)
• End of Day One: video, slides 3D

Day 2: OLG models – Stationary general equilibrium and Transition paths.

• Part 4: OLG Models (slides, codes)
  • Stationary general equilbrium
  • Government: Taxes and transfers
• Part 5: Transition path in OLG Models (slides, codes)
  • General eqm transition paths
  • Demographic transition
    (slides 5 closing)