Tuesday, April 7, 2026

Employee Workplace Needs Differ by Generation

Mon, 25 January 2021  |  workplace demographics employment 

A new survey of employees at medium to large employers found there are significant differences in workplace needs based on the worker's generation. Baby Boomers report that more compensation would improve their work, while Gen Zers desire more software to help them automate aspects of daily routines.

Most employees in this U.S. study report unexpectedly positive remote work experience and productivity in 2020, but there are notable disparities in how the shift to working from home (WFH) is impacting workers across every generation. In fact, respondents' top requests to make ... Read More

Online Car-buying Drives Consumer Satisfaction

Mon, 25 January 2021  |  transportation automation 

There was a time when consumers rated the car-buying process roughly on par with a stubborn root canal. But those days are passing into the rearview mirror now, as auto dealers move more steps of the retail process online resulting in consumer satisfaction hitting an all-time high, according to the new Digitization of End-to-End Retailing (DoEER) study by Cox Automotive.

With buyers spending less time at dealerships and benefitting from more efficient, digital retailing processes, those who were "highly satisfied" with the overall shopping experience reached 72%, up from 60% in ... Read More

Mortgage Rates Move Little in Latest Survey

Fri, 22 January 2021  |  mortgage interest rates 

The latest results from Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) show that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 2.77 percent.

“Mortgage rates have hovered near historic lows for almost a year, fueling purchase and refinance activity amid a global health crisis,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “We’re now seeing rates fluctuate a bit as political and economic factors drive Treasury yields higher. However, we forecast rates to remain relatively low this year as the Federal Reserve keeps interest rates anchored near zero for a longe... Read More

Home Values Break New Growth Records as Demand Surge Presses On

Fri, 22 January 2021  |  housing 

Home value growth continued its meteoric rise in December as towering demand for homes carried on into winter, according to Zillow's® latest Real Estate Market Report. Houses are going under contact quickly and sales far outpace the year prior as all-time low mortgage rates help keep monthly payments manageable, despite rising prices.

Typical home values in the U.S. climbed to $266,104, up 8.4% from a year ago -- the highest annual increase since January 2014.

Home value growth over the last quarter in the U.S. was 3.2% -- higher than at any time since the Zillow Ho... Read More

In-Home Data Usage Surges Throughout Pandemic

Fri, 22 January 2021  |  data pandemic 

As millions of Americans sheltered in place and shifted to working from home and remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing research from Comscore found that overall in-home data usage levels throughout 2020 remained significantly higher than in 2019.

Throughout the first several of months of COVID-related lockdowns, data consumption from Comscore Connected Home custom reporting showed increased usage across all connected devices; smart TVs, laptops, gaming consoles, phones, smart speakers, streaming boxes & sticks and tablets all saw strong growth in data usage versu... Read More

Annual Home Sales See Highest Level Since 2006

Fri, 22 January 2021  |  housing 

Existing-home sales rose in December, with home sales in 2020 reaching their highest level since 2006, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Activity in the major regions was mixed on a month-over-month basis, but each of the four areas recorded double-digit year-over-year growth in December.

Total existing-home sales, https://www.nar.realtor/existing-home-sales, completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 0.7% from November to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 6.76 million in December. Sales in total r... Read More