menu_open Columnists
Sydney Lake

Sydney Lake

Fortune

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

Starter homes cost $1 million in a record 242 U.S. cities—proof the affordability crisis has hit the homes meant for first-time buyers

The first rung on the property ladder now costs seven figures in a record 242 cities, a new Zillow report shows.

yesterday 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

First-time buyers have ‘no low-rate mortgage to surrender’—and with rates back above 7%, one-quarter are leaning on family for the down payment

For first-time buyers, saving for a down payment can take years, and a record share are now relying on inheritances.

previous day 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Ken Griffin and Jeff Bezos helped make Miami a billionaire magnet—but Florida’s new $250,000 homestead exemption barely makes a dent for them

A middle-class homeowner and the owner of a $50 million mansion could save about the same $2,000 a year under Florida’s new property tax cut. Only...

thursday 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

MacKenzie Scott’s gifts come with no strings—but the four biggest donors to democracy programs put $189 million into institutes bearing their names

The four largest gifts to democracy programs from 2021 to 2025 created or expanded university institutes named for Leonard Schaeffer, the Rooneys, the...

04.11.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Transamerica Institute’s CEO warns of a retirement ‘perfect storm’ as even affluent Americans fall short of the $2.6 million goal

Uncertainty about the future of Social Security, persistent inflation, competing financial priorities, and the threat of job disruptions are all...

03.11.2026 60

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Michael Dell turned $1,000 and a college dorm room into a $302 billion company. His advice to founders seeking validation: ‘Don’t go ask’

Before he built a tech empire, Dell was a teenager selling newspaper subscriptions to newlyweds he tracked down through marriage records. He says the...

01.11.2026 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

The Pentagon and Britain are bracing for the power to go out. The ultrawealthy got there first, with backup generators, escape homes, and stockpiles

From Mark Zuckerberg’s Hawaii compound to Miami buyers who won’t consider a house without a generator, the rich have been planning for outages for...

30.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Coconut Grove is Miami’s billionaire enclave, drawing Larry Page and Ken Griffin. Now luxury hotelier Raffles is building 35 homes there from $4.5M

In an exclusive announcement to Fortune, Raffles unveiled its first standalone residential building—35 waterfront homes in Miami’s most...

29.10.2026 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Mark Cuban took off his watch the day he became a millionaire: ‘I wanted to be able to control my own time’

The now-billionaire said his first big payday wasn’t about luxury. It was about getting control of his own time.

28.10.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Billionaire Uber cofounder Travis Kalanick moved to Texas—dodging a possible $180 million hit from California’s billionaire tax

Kalanick has owned a Lake Austin home for five years. He made it his primary residence two weeks before California’s proposed wealth tax would have...

27.10.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Rich Eisen went from SportsCenter to NFL Network to owning his show. Now he’s back at ESPN, betting ’90s nostalgia still sells

The broadcaster and CEO is streaming on Disney , airing on ESPN Radio, and mining ESPN’s archive for a SportsCenter nostalgia series.

25.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Jeff Bezos took 60 meetings to raise Amazon’s first $1 million. Now worth $361 billion, he says the cure for stress is to ‘take the first step’

Bezos worked through decades of stress to build the No. 1 Fortune 500 company.

24.10.2026 100

Fortune

Sydney Lake

The $18 billion Ford Foundation is getting its biggest overhaul since 2015 to fight autocracy—with about $700 million in grants expected in 2027

Less than a year into the job, president Heather Gerken is reorganizing the 90-year-old philanthropy around seven funding areas.

23.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Jeff Bezos reportedly added a $69.5 million beach house to his $237 million Miami compound. A broker says that’s how billionaires live now

A record-setting Golden Beach sale is reportedly tied to the Amazon founder, who already owns three waterfront properties in “Billionaire Bunker.”

22.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

The Bezos Earth Fund has given away $2.4 billion. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos’ latest $100M bet is saving species on the edge of extinction

The couple’s climate fund is one of nine founding members of a new alliance that has committed more than $500 million over five years as governments...

21.10.2026 100

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Larry Page could dodge nearly $15 billion in taxes after leaving California and spending $173 million on a Miami compound

The Google cofounder started cutting ties with the state last year. Californians vote Nov. 3 on whether to tax their billionaires.

20.10.2026 150

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Women see five or six doctors to figure out menopause symptoms. A top Novartis exec says AI could finally connect the dots

At Fortune’s MPW Summit, top health care leaders said midlife care is too fragmented, and AI could help women put the pieces together.

19.10.2026 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Melinda French Gates has a 48-hour rule for criticizing employees. The billionaire philanthropist says it’s because ‘being clear is kind’

The billionaire philanthropist’s 48-hour feedback rule is designed to replace anger with honesty, and it eliminates surprises at performance reviews.

18.10.2026 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Mark Cuban is worth $10 billion—but in college, he paid for junior year with a dorm-room chain letter he admits was ‘basically a scam’

Cuban, who grew up in a working-class family, says his early hustles laid the groundwork for a career that took him from a crowded Dallas apartment to...

17.10.2026 30

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Susan Dell is the one running the Dells’ $10 billion giving operation—and her biggest bets are on kids, health care, and UT Austin

Michael Dell may be one of the richest men in the world, but his wife Susan is helping decide where billions of their fortune go.

17.10.2026 250

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Jeff Bezos sold his Seattle mansion for a record $63 million before Washington passed a millionaires tax—he now lives in a $237 million Miami compound

He and Lauren Sánchez Bezos now live in a $237 million Miami compound. Washington voters decide Nov. 3 whether to repeal the tax.

16.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

‘No one was coming to save me’: How Reese Witherspoon built a $900 million company from a problem Hollywood wouldn’t fix

The actress built Hello Sunshine after Hollywood told her there were no female-led movies to make. Five years after a deal valued it at $900 million,...

15.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Blackstone’s Wesley LePatner did it ‘all at once.’ The foundation made in her honor wants 1,000 leaders to master work, civic life, and philanthropy

Her husband and a former Blackstone colleague say the late executive balanced career, community, and philanthropy, and they want to train others to do...

15.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Citi CEO Jane Fraser on the next phase of her turnaround: To be the best, Citi has ‘to beat the best’

Five years into Citi’s turnaround, the No. 1 Most Powerful Woman says the heavy lifting is done—and AI will shape what comes next.

14.10.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Jennifer Siebel Newsom on her legacy as California’s First Partner: Equal pay ‘wasn’t enough,’ so she turned to women’s wealth

At Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Summit, Jennifer Siebel Newsom pointed to financial literacy, savings programs, and capital for female founders as...

13.10.2026 10

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Alphabet President Ruth Porat on how Google is funding AI to win long term, and the biggest risks ahead

Google is spending about $200 billion on its AI buildout this year, Porat confirmed at Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit on Monday, and the peak is...

12.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America’s $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

MacKenzie Scott donated $7 billion in 2025, bringing her five-year total to $26.2 billion, even as she stays out of the spotlight.

11.10.2026 100

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Meet Aurora: the invite-only, $10,000-a-year AI concierge that anticipates the ultra-wealthy’s every need

Backed by $12 million from VCs and family offices, Aurora pairs AI with human tastemakers to manage members’ health, travel, and dining.

11.10.2026 350

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Gwynne Shotwell’s $300 million SpaceX pledge to Trump Accounts shows billionaires a tax-smart way to give away their own company’s stock

New Treasury rules let the ultrawealthy send shares of their own companies to millions of kids, as long as the gift goes through a charity.

09.10.2026 30

Fortune

Sydney Lake

The ultrawealthy are buying nearby homes to keep staff close—and Larry Ellison and Mark Zuckerberg are two examples

Ellison spent nearly $10 million on homes for his staff near his Florida estate, while Zuckerberg has spent more than $110 million buying up his Palo...

08.10.2026 90

Fortune

Sydney Lake

A $13 billion property mogul is the latest to flee Britain’s new taxes for Monaco, a warning sign as California votes on a billionaire tax

David Reuben's move to Monaco follows a wave of departures since the U.K. scrapped its non-dom regime—and offers a preview of the fight California...

07.10.2026 100

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Brands are fleeing TV for social. The agency behind 50 Cent’s and Alix Earle’s viral Super Bowl-week ads just sold for at least $100 million

Exclusive: Get Engaged becomes a part of SAMY, a global social-first marketing company.

06.10.2026 350

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Wealthy boomers doubt their heirs will keep giving as $124 trillion changes hands, BofA finds. The data shows a different reality

Younger donors give to more causes than their parents—but only 47% of the wealthy think they're ready.

06.10.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Warren Buffett’s first tax bill at age 14 was $7. Now Berkshire Hathaway’s is almost $27 billion—and he still says the rich don’t pay enough

That’s a far cry from the $26.8 billion Buffett said his company, Berkshire Hathaway, paid in 2024 taxes.

04.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

MacKenzie Scott’s first novel in 13 years is being called ‘baffling’—and critics are left asking what message she’s trying to send

The billionaire philanthropist who’s donated $26 billion gave away Last Days in Two Nations for free on Substack, noticeably not on Amazon.

03.10.2026 150

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Trump says Biden overcharged Obamacare customers. Now almost 1 million of them are getting $500 checks—here’s who qualifies

The Treasury Department has started mailing one-time $500 payments to HealthCare.gov customers in 30 states who paid full price for 2026 coverage.

02.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Billion-dollar tech company Starkey unveils its newest hearing aid with AI accessible for all generations—solidifying the ear is ‘the new wrist’

The Omega AI model builds on Starkey’s mission to make their hearing aids more of a lifestyle device.

01.10.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Ken Griffin doubles down on Miami with a record $3 billion gift to Carnegie Mellon—and plans for a campus in the city Citadel now calls home

The Citadel founder, who moved his firm from Chicago to Miami in 2022, is bankrolling a Wynwood campus that will organize learning around societal...

30.09.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Jeff Bezos is giving $25 million to protect the Pacific—but his climate fund still has about $7 billion left to spend in four years

Lauren Sánchez Bezos is leading the couple’s Bezos Earth Fund, which has granted only about $2.4 billion of their $10 billion climate pledge by 2030.

30.09.2026 150

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Billionaire oil tycoon Harold Hamm donates $150M to the University of Oklahoma to help study a cause that’s personal to him: diabetes

The gift is the largest in OU's history, and it arrives as Oklahoma ranks near the bottom nationally for health system performance.

29.09.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Baby boomers are setting up a showdown with millennials, aging in place and plunking down hundreds of thousands on renovating their homes

Millennials need homes, but because of high home prices and mortgage rates, baby boomers have little reason to sell.

27.09.2026 30

Fortune

Sydney Lake

With no heirs to leave it to, this billionaire is pouring his fortune into a Texas ghost town of about 25 people

John Poindexter, the 81-year-old founder of truck-body maker J.B. Poindexter & Co., wants to turn Shafter, Texas, into a living history museum.

27.09.2026 80

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Brené Brown says the key to surviving AI is rejecting Jack Welch’s advice and embracing humanity. The problem is humans ‘can’t stand each other’

Treating our humanity like a liability could mean ignoring our greatest superpower, Brown said.

25.09.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Alice Walton got $33 billion richer last year without running a company. She’s building a tuition-free medical school instead

The Walmart heiress has never run the retailer. She's spending her fortune on Arkansas health care, from a tuition-free medical school to a new $350...

25.09.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Google CEO Sundar Pichai says this one uncomfortable habit gets young workers ahead—and helped build his $1.6 billion fortune

Pichai has been with Google for more than two decades.

24.09.2026 20

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Billionaire Nike cofounder Phil Knight gives $1 billion to his alma mater: ‘This is no time to abandon’ higher education

Phil and Penny Knight are funding a new engineering college at the University of Oregon, the largest known gift to a U.S. public flagship university.

24.09.2026 40

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Warren Buffett’s son worked on a farm instead of going to college—he’s now the chairman of $1 trillion Berkshire Hathaway

Before becoming chairman of his father's trillion-dollar company, Howard Buffett was a college dropout who taught himself to farm.

23.09.2026 80

Fortune

Sydney Lake

Meet the wealth manager who built a $38 billion firm and gave $100 million to the MBA program that launched him

Jeff and Cheryl Thomasson donate $100 million to Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

22.09.2026 60

Fortune

Sydney Lake

‘Stealth wealth’ is reshaping luxury real estate: How the ultrarich buy multimillion-dollar mansions off the books

The ultrawealthy now treat visibility as a liability and they're paying to disappear from luxury real estate records.

19.09.2026 150

Fortune

Sydney Lake

The Gates Foundation is spending $400 million on AI in schools. Teachers warn it could ‘end up widening’ the divide it’s meant to close

“AI can support teacher expertise, but it cannot replace it,” one educator told Fortune.

19.09.2026 150

Fortune

Sydney Lake