This paper demonstrates that, in the context of U.S. housing data, rents and <i>ex ante</i> user costs diverge markedly-in both growth rates and levels-for extended periods of time, a seeming failure of arbitrage and a puzzle from the perspective of standard capital theory. The tremendous volatility of...

The poverty measure presented compares spending needs to resources available to meet those needs. The analysis is for the U.S.; however, lessons from other countries regarding desirable properties of a poverty measure are considered. A primary focus is internal consistency between thresholds and...