Approximate value of online retail sales in the U.S. in 2021, according to a report released by the National Retail Federation: $1.05 trillion
Approximate value of returned merchandise from online sales, with an average return rate of 20.8%: $218 billion
Approximate value of returns that were deemed "fraudulent": $23.2 billion
Ranks of auto parts, apparel, home improvement and housewares (tied) on the list of categories with the highest return rates: 1, 2, 3
Source: NRF.
Percentage of Americans who say that their romantic partner's financial standing is "important," with 1 in 4 saying it's "very important," according to research from Survey Monkey: 60
Percentage who say that if they were to marry or remarry today, they'd ask their partner to sign a prenuptial agreement if they had vastly different finances: 32
Percentage who said they'd be willing to sign a prenup: 53
Source: Survey Monkey.
Percentage of U.S. adults who would like to have the option of relying on their family for long-term care if they need it, according to a survey by Nationwide: 70
Percentage who feel it is the responsibility of their family to care for them if they need long-term care: 50
Source: Nationwide.
Percentage of homes bought in the fourth quarter of 2021 that were bought by real estate investors, according to a survey by Redfin: 18.4
Number of homes that translates to: 80,293
Percentage of those purchases that were made in cash: 75.3
Source: Redfin.
Number of March Madness NCAA tournament championships UCLA has won, the most of any university, according to research by Statista: 11
Number of times North Carolina has been in the Final Four, the most of any school: 20
Number of consecutive times that Kansas has appeared in March Madness, the most of any team: 32
Source: Statista.
Percentage of single women who say they desire a partner who wants marriage (up from 61% in 2019), according to a Match.com survey: 76
Percentage of men who say the same (up from 55% in 2019): 77
Source: Match.com.
Percentage of men who believe that mental and physical health are equally as important as wealth and current lifestyle, according to a poll conducted by OnePoll and commissioned by Nutrisystem: 43
If given the choice between getting a promotion at work or losing 20 pounds, percentage who would choose to focus on their weight-loss goals: 30
Source: Nutrisystem.
Percentage of renters who said they have not missed a rent payment over the past 12 months, up significantly from 57% in Sept. 2021, according to a survey by realtor.com: 82
Percentage of landlords who plan to raise the rent on at least one of their rental properties in the next 12 months: 61
Most common percentage increase: 5 to 10
Source: realtor.com.
On average across 30 countries, percentage of adults who do not expect that COVID-19 will ever stop spreading entirely, according to an Ipsos survey for the World Economic Forum: 71
Ranks of attending sporting events, travel, eating inside restaurants and returning to the workplace on the list of activities with support for requiring proof of vaccination to participate: 1, 2, 3, 4
Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.
Percentage of Americans with some college experience or a two-year college degree who don't believe the costs of higher education are worth the price, according to a survey from BestColleges.com: 32
Percentage of those with a four-year college degree who don't believe the costs of higher education are worth the price: 25
Source: BestColleges.com.
Share of Americans who say that romantic gestures are more important to them now than they were pre-pandemic, according to a WalletHub survey: 58
Source: WalletHub.
Idle Thought
"There is only one way to achieve happiness on this terrestrial ball, and that is to have either a clear conscience or none at all. " -- Ogden Nash, poet (1902-1971)