November 3, 2014
The rich get richer, through no faultâor virtueâof their own, according to this sweeping study of wealth in the modern world. Economist Piketty's formula "r > g" expresses the simple but profound insight that because the returns on capitalâinterest on savings, stock dividends and appreciation, rent from a farm or apartment buildingâusually exceed the economy's growth rate, wealth (especially inherited wealth) tends to grow faster than wages and become more concentrated at the top of the income scale, and the economy increasingly caters to rich elites instead of ordinary workers. (The best antidote to this inexorable tendency, he argues, is a direct progressive tax on wealth.) Piketty makes his case with three centuries' worth of economic data from around the world organized in a trove of detailed but lucid tables and graphs. This is a serious, meaty economic treatise, but Piketty's prose (in Goldhammer's deft translation) is wonderfully readable and engaging, and illuminates the human reality behind the econometric statsâespecially in his explorations of the role of capital in the novels of Jane Austen and Balzac. Full of insights but free of dogma, this is a seminal examination of how entrenched wealth and intractable inequality continue to shape the economy.
October 24, 2016
In this strong debut, Avery, an equity research analyst and leader of CIBC Capital Markets' real-estate team, draws on his expertise to challenge the adage "Why rent when you can buy?" He aims to demonstrate that, especially in today's housing market, owning may not be the best option for many Canadians. Avery begins by explaining that "rent" is something that all homeowners pay as well, even if it is not called "rent" per se. He then gets into the nitty-gritty of the Canadian housing market and breaks down not only how it works but why buying a house may not be as sustainable and certain an investment as it once was. Finally, he argues that informed renters can easily end up in better financial condition than homeowners. The book is sometimes repetitive, but Avery skillfully conveys his subject matter in an interesting and easily digestible manner, a laudable achievement given the sometimes complicated nature of the real estate and investment world. His friendly tone helps to make the book more readable. As one of the few guides specific to Canadian renters, Avery's fills an information gap and is a solid overall choice for anyone interested in Canadian housing options.