Some believe declines in physical-asset prices prior to recessions make the recessions worse, but recent literature challenges the strength of that connection.

Among the topics discussed were income growth volatility, AI's impact on productivity and how housing price changes affect young businesses.

Different people have disparate experiences in accessing credits. Exploring ways to close this credit access gap could provide more economic opportunities for underprivileged areas.

Some believe rises in financial aid such as student loans cause corresponding rises in tuition. But reality seems much more nuanced.

How many more borrowers working in public services recently became eligible for student loan forgiveness in the Fifth District?

Small businesses remained challenged throughout 2021 and those that sought financing to bridge funding gaps experienced a higher rate of denials than before the pandemic.

Carrie Cook describes the role of the Federal Reserve System in the community development sector and how the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond partners with communities to fulfill this role. Cook became the Richmond Fed's community affairs officer and vice president of community development in May 2022.

Does everyone have the same set of choices when it comes to retirement and other financial decisions pertaining to aging, and is there anything we can do about disparities in access to those choices? Charles Gerena poses these questions to the three panelists from the District Dialogues event in August 2022 titled "The Economics of an Aging America."

Urvi Neelakantan and Kristen Broady review their research on differences in wealth between races and potential causes behind these differences. They also discuss potential solutions to closing wealth gaps. Neelakantan is a senior policy economist at the Richmond Fed and Broady is a senior economist, economic advisor, and director of the Economic Mobility Project at the Chicago Fed.