Remember “Cash for Clunkers” — that stimulus program that got Americans to buy, by one estimate, 125,000 new cars? It cost $3 billion. Any guesses as to how much money is set aside for housing stimulus that remains unspent? …
Rick Perry: Job Creation in an Oil-Driven Economy
Texas has created almost as many jobs during Rick Perry’s career as governor as the rest of the country has lost. So what’s the secret behind the “Texas Miracle”? Rising GOP presidential candidate Perry says it’s about putting job creation in the private sector’s hands. “We know dollars do far more to create jobs and prosperity in the …
Customer Service Done Right: When an Actual Human Being Answers the Phone
The ninth circle of customer service hell usually begins with a phone call looped through a maddeningly automated system known as IVR (Interactive Voice Response)—you know, the one in which you “Press 1 to continue in English” …
To Save the Housing Market, Tear Down Houses
The economic recovery is in a bad way. To get it back on track, the housing market will need revival. And yet, three years after the economic crisis (and after bailouts, multiple rounds of stimulus, and much toiling over the national debt) housing numbers are getting worse. That saps consumer demand and drags down economic growth. …
Bank Stocks Are On the Upswing
Like the rest of the market, bank stocks have taken a beating in August, led by Bank of America, which is down 40% over the past four weeks. But investors waded back into the sector Wednesday, propelled by a surprisingly upbeat …
Why Are So Many People Freezing Food?
Frozen dinner … again. But maybe that’s not such a bad thing. For busy families hoping to save time and money, a favorite new meal-preparing strategy involves setting aside one day a month to cook—and then freeze—an entire …
Let’s Sell Japan Our Problems
The thermostats in office buildings in Tokyo these days are set to 28° C —or a balmy 82.4°F . You walk into a building and get hit with heat—a little bit unsettling given the blast of cold air I expect in a New York City skyscraper. But in the aftermath of a tragic earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear plant meltdown that has left this …
5 Ways To Repair A Trashed Credit Score
The past few years have been rough on real-estate values and employment figures, which translates to a third category that’s been trampled in the aftermath of the Great Recession: consumer credit scores. According to research …
Six lessons Japan can teach the West
If you are living in the U.S. or Western Europe and feeling pretty bad about the miserable state of the recovery, political paralysis, and growing unease about your country’s future, remember things could be worse. You could be in Japan.
Japan has been experiencing those same woes for the past 20 years. And there is no end in sight. …
Congressional Budget Office: Get Used to 8% Unemployment
If you’re looking for good news from the Congressional Budget Office’s annual summer update of its budget and economic outlook, which was released today, there’s always this: at least the CBO isn’t predicting that double-dip recession. According to the non-partisan agency that provides economic data to Congress, real GDP will …
Just How Much Are You Getting Ripped Off at the Car Dealership Service Department?
A car dealership service manager confesses that maintenance bills are routinely inflated with unnecessary fluid flushes and replacements, nickel-and-dime charges for regularly used “shop supplies” like rags and lubricants, and …
“You can’t add depth by adding depth.”