An extra cost in American homes sales

Here's one way to make it cheaper to buy and sell a home in the US: hire a real estate agent from Britain! Read my Datapoints column in the NYT on how US homeowners pay far higher real estate commissions than British homeowners. 

In checking accounts, the less you have the more you pay

Read my New York Times Datapoints column on how the poor pay a higher price than anyone else--yet again.

Two Countries, Two Vastly Different Phone Bills

Read my NYT Datapoints column on US cell phone prices compared with the UK. Why are we paying much higher prices for cell phone service? As far as I can tell, the quality is not demonstrably different. But wouldn't you like to know? Why can't we have a good comparison about cell phone pricing and quality of service in the US?

American pays more for the internet than anyone else

Well maybe not quite more than anyone else but compared with major developed countries! Read my Newsweek piece on how America has the most expensive communications services--phone, TV and internet--compared to the UK, Germany, France and others. And it's not as if the quality of what we get is demonstrably better.

Who You Calling Parochial?

Other nations used to make fun of Americans for not being very well traveled. Most Americans don't even have a valid passport, the joke went. But that is changing. More Americans than ever before hold a current passport. Read my Newsweek piece on the new trend.

Little Italy

How has Italy benefited from the EU? Looking over a ten year period, the Italian economy has actually shrunk. What's next with other major European countries now showing weakness? Read my Newsweek piece on the topic.

Leisure class dismissed

Read my Newsweek piece. You May have more time on your hands than you think.

Universities are chasing endowments at the students' expense

Here's an idea for how to curtail rising college tuition. Read my Newsweek piece and find out.

Wildly different prices suggest US health care must heal itself

Read my Newsweek column on the crazy pricing of health care services. Perhaps Obamacare's greatest achievement will be making health care pricing a bit more transparent.

The typical household, now worth a third less

Read my New York Times Datapoints column in today's paper. The numbers are a bombshell. The rich may be getting richer but the vast majority of Americans aren't standing still, they're actually getting slaughtered financially. An economic system where only a few win while the majority loses is broken.

Watch my video at the 92nd Street Y

Watch my Two Numbers column on the rise of gmail produced by the 92nd Street Y

You're half the person you used to be

Read my Newsweek 2 Numbers column on how much wealth the typical American family has lost due to the Great Recession. It's staggering!

Porkage Fees

Read my Newsweek Two Numbers column on why wine costs so much in restaurants. It's a little window into the way the market works.

Choices abound in an ETF Boom

Read my Datapoints column in Sunday's NYT on the hottest area of the market.

Encryption protects Gmail from everyone except Google

Read my Newsweek 2 Numbers column on Google's strategy with Gmail.

The Coal, Hard Facts

Read my Newsweek piece on what really matters in reducing coal emissions.

Shares and Not Share Alike

Read my Newsweek piece on how the stock market has become less relevant to most Americans.

The Surge In Investing by Conscience

Read my NYT Datapoints on the growth in sustainable and responsible investing. The size of the industry and the growth since 2007 surprised me! Will growth continue?

Kale has a chip on its shoulder

Read my Newsweek piece on our eating habits. It might surprise you.

Paying a Premium to Cross the Pond

Read my NYT datapoints column on how a lack of competition in transatlantic flights is keeping airfares high.

That and $30 gets You a Cuppa Joe

Read my Newsweek Two Numbers on the dark side of luxury goods.

Two Numbers: Look who's crushing Iron Man

Read my Newsweek piece on how digital games are the fastest growing segment of the entertainment industry.

It's a Plane. It's a Yacht. No it's your tuition bill.

Read my Newsweek Two Numbers column this week on how average college costs are almost 40% of average household income.

Datapoints: How ETFs Have Gained Momentum

Read my column in the NYT about the growing popularity of ETFs. Are they a good investment vehicle for everyone? 

Two Numbers: You drive like an American!

Read my latest Newsweek piece on why we need to commit to making our roads safer. Mayor de Blasio is really on to something!

Two Numbers: Listening to Herbert Hoover

Read my latest Newsweek piece on the rise of rugged individualism. With the weak labor market, more Americans are going it alone.

Two Numbers: Life in the Slow Lane

Read my latest piece in Newsweek on our 2% economy.

For Nonprofits, a bigger share of the economy

Read my Datapoints column in the New York Times on really strong growth in the nonprofit sector. A very interesting and not well understood part of the economy that looks set to become even bigger. Wish we had better numbers and more transparency!

Two Numbers: Things Went Better With Bottled Water

Read my latest Newsweek piece on how bottled water is the new soft drink.

Two Numbers: A Tale of Two Restaurants

Read my latest piece in Newsweek. Another sign of how the job market still stinks for many Americans. A tale of two restaurants is really a tale of two labor markets.

Two Numbers: Spring Reading List from Hell

Read my Newsweek piece on how much our income tax code has grown over the years. For most of us the tax code seems to have literally outgrown its usefulness.

Two Numbers: Twitter's Dicey 2013

Read my Newsweek piece on Twitter's 2013. Even after the sell off, Twitter's valuation is sky high! At this rate, it would take hundreds of years for the stock to pay back.

At the IRS trying to collect more with less

Read my Datapoints column in Sunday's New York Times about how fiscal austerity is making it harder to collect taxes. It seems the Republican agenda goes beyond cutting taxes to limiting the collection of taxes that are legally due.

Two Numbers: It pays more to flip burgers down under

Read my latest piece in Newsweek about how stingy the US is in terms of the minimum wage compared with other wealthy countries. Australia's minimum wage is more than double that of the US and it hasn't held back the Aussie economy all these years!

Two Numbers: Obamacar

Read my Newsweek column. Saving the US car industry may prove to be Obama's greatest legacy.

Two Numbers: The Pay Stinks

Read my Newsweek column on how the jobs crisis is turning into a wages crisis.

Two Numbers: Why the IRS will love legal pot

Read my Newsweek column on how big a national market marijuana could be if legalized.

Two Numbers: America's Energy Jolt

Read my column in the New Newsweek on how we are fast approaching energy self-sufficiency.

Datapoints: An Advantage Vanishes for Money Funds

Read my NYT column on a little appreciated Datapoint for investors.

Two Numbers: The Housing Market Breathes Under Water

Read my Newsweek column on the housing market recovery. The surprising thing is that for all the strong activity and price gains of 2013, one in five Americans with a mortgage still owe more to the bank than their home is worth. The housing recovery has a long way to go!