CARTERSVILLE, GA, October 8, 2015 – Dr. Clifford Lipscomb, Director of Economic Research at Greenfield Advisors, was named the chairperson of the Cost of Living Index Technical Advisory Committee. The Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) publishes quarterly the Cost of Living Index (COLI) and provides city-to-city comparisons of living costs in metropolitan areas.

The COLI uses data from more than 300 cities to create a database of economic factors that can be used to compare living costs throughout the United States. Dr. Lipscomb joined the technical advisory committee in 2010 as a board member, and before that, he gathered data for the index for 5 years during his tenure as Director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Valdosta State University. Dr. Lipscomb is excited to head the committee in the midst of a growing and recovering economy.

“The Technical Advisory Committee serves as a sounding board for new innovations and methodologies that can be used to refine the way that the COLI aggregates data. During my time on the board, we have reviewed ideas such as a county-level house price index and updating the basket of goods where we need pricing information. I expect that my collaboration with other experts on the committee will generate some nice changes to the COLI data gathering process, and be fun, too.”

The COLI is utilized by everyone from residents considering a move to a new city to economists and media who use it to report on trends on national, state, and local levels. Each year, the COLI is published every 3 months, with the fourth index summarizing the year’s statistics.

COLI Project Manager, Jennie Allison, states, “Dr. Lipscomb is taking the Technical Advisory Committee lead during a pivotal time of product growth. For this reason, we look forward to working even closer with him to develop new methods in updating goods-and-services and pricing methodologies. Consumers are in greater need than ever for quality data that drives smart decision-making, and COLI is helping buyers make smarter choices.”

COLI is the most reliable source of key consumer city-to-city comparison costs since 1968. COLI’s living-costs comparisons are recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CNN Money, and the President’s Council of Economic Advisors.

In addition to his work with the COLI, Dr. Lipscomb leads a team of analysts at Greenfield Advisors who work on a variety of real estate and economic cases with clients all across the United States. You can find out more about Greenfield Advisors by visiting www.greenfieldadvisors.com.

About C2ER

Founded in 1961, the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) is a membership organization that promotes excellence in community and economic research by working to improve data availability, enhance data quality, and foster learning about regional economic analytic methods. C2ER accomplishes this mission by:

  • Conducting training, advocacy, and research
  • Delivering innovative products and services for researchers
  • Developing professional networks

C2ER’s 500+ members span a broad range of specialty skills and collectively touch all aspects of community and economic development in the U.S. and Canada. Learn more about the organization at www.c2er.org, and find out more about the kinds of education that the organization provides for economic development research professionals by visiting https://www.c2er.org/events/training.asp.

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