Hi! We marched into March quicker than expected, like noticing your name engraved on a keychain on a revolving souvenir stand. Speaking on engraved names did you know:

Well, those are some interesting name facts on the occasion of Unique Names Day. So try naming your kid Alex or Anna for legal purposes, and now let’s get started with our regular!

Today’s special:

The Dating Dilemma: Is the American dating scene at its absolute lowest!

Roof Delinquents: Why are Americans insanely behind on their mortgage payments?

Long Distance Promotion-Ship: You might be born in the wrong generation to expect a raise at work…

The American dating landscape today is less about chasing the thrill and more like a slow dreadful crawl. A YouGov poll found that 39% of Americans didn’t go on any dates in the past year, including with a current spouse or partner. The disconnect is sharpest among singles, where 69% report rarely or never dating. Romance is now contingent on who has the time and money to spare. About 74% of high earners say they give “a lot” or “some” time to romance each week, as opposed to 57% of the general population and just 50% of low earners.

The same divide is also evident in weekly dating: 15% of high earners go on dates at least once a week versus 7% of low earners. Gender gaps add another layer, with 63% of men reporting regular romantic effort, compared with 52% of women, and nearly 28% of whom say they spend no time at all on their romantic lives. Over their lifetime, younger adults report far fewer dates than older Americans: 33% of adults aged 18–44 report having gone on just 1–3 dates total, while older adults report broader experience, including 20% of those 45+ who say they’ve been on more than 15 dates.

Even spending patterns usually interpreted as a sign of interest are being redefined. The average Gen Z in the dating game reportedly spent $0 per month on dating, while about one-third of all adults spent less than $100. A closer look at dating apps also helps explain why the playing field feels so distorted. 37% of adults think dating platforms come with too many options thereby leaving them indecisive, while just 13% feel there aren’t enough.

Financial restraint is just part of the story, dating today is unusually governed by rigid social expectations: 88% of Americans say dismissing service staff is unacceptable, 87% reject criticizing a date’s order or frequent phone use, and 84% disapprove of arriving late or encouraging heavy drinking. This restraint is prevalent across both genders, and shows caution rather than blatant disinterest. The number accentuates a dating economy where the trade is defined by hesitation.

A report on dating trends by Forbes shows technology has convoluted rather than clarifying the process. 42% of U.S. adults say online dating has made the quest for long-term partners easier, but 22% say the quest has become harder because it’s virtual. Social psychology also plays a role including how men and women approach vulnerability, communication, and the accountability that comes with it.

This has created mismatches in how people attempt to connect. For women the weight of bearing a masculinity crisis is unbearable. For men, living by the ideals of masculinity peddled by influencers, 55% of them feel women just don’t care about men. 62% of single women don’t even want to date compared to 37% of men for whom the feeling is mutual.

By late 2025, U.S. households were ending the year with unprecedented debt and mortgage balances accounted for a massive portion of it. Total household debt rose to a staggering $197 billion in the third quarter of 2025, bringing the aggregate to $18.59 trillion. Wherein mortgage balances alone accounted for $13.07 trillion. At the same time, newly originated home loans totaled $512 billion. It’s safe to say, borrowing wasn't slowing down even as financial pressure kept on piling up.

Debt isn’t just growing, it’s becoming harder to manage. While still far below crisis-era peaks, early-stage mortgage stress has re-emerged, with mortgages 30–89 days delinquent rising to 1.9% by Q1 of 2025, alongside an increase in 90-day-plus delinquencies to 0.8%. In Q3 2025, mortgage delinquency rates, rose to 3.99% of all outstanding residential loans. That includes the number of mortgages that were at least 30 days past due, including foreclosure, which was at 2.9%. 104 out of 384 U.S. metropolitan areas posted an annual increase in their overall delinquency rate.

What’s driving these pressures is more than just the size of the debt. Rising costs outside of housing including property taxes that are 15.4% higher than pre-pandemic levels, have eroded the financial buffer many homeowners once relied on, particularly in states hit by natural disasters, where insurance costs have spiked and incomes lag.

The broader picture from the New York Fed accentuates the scale and gravity of the challenge. In the third quarter of 2025, delinquency rates across all household debt types remained elevated at 4.5%, with mortgage originations rising yet only partially offsetting the rising burden of payments. Meanwhile, mortgage balances chugged along and grew by $137 billion in a single quarter, surpassing other forms of consumer credit.

Americans aren’t just struggling with bigger mortgage payments; they’re slipping behind across the broader credit landscape. Rising late payments amid receding inflation proves the points of how fixed costs, essential expenses, and competing debt obligations are pushing many borrowers closer to the edge of financial distress. With mortgage balances now making up the largest share of total consumer debt, a rising share of Americans find themselves stretched beyond historical norms.

For many U.S. workers, the promise of career momentum and financial progression is fading because it’s taking too long to move up the ladder. And it’s not just the promotions that are cooling but the salary bump which usually comes after is slumping too. 40% of employees didn’t receive a raise at all in the past year, even though for those who did, the average increase was just 3.6%, down sharply from 6.2% in 2022 and 4.6% in 2023.

Beyond base pay workers are feeling the day-to-day strain of rising costs: 55% of the cohort struggle with financial strain, up from 52% in 2024. Bonuses once the key upside of compensation are shrinking and slowly becoming a thing of the past. A payroll analysis shows that less than 40% of workers received any bonus in December 2024, down from 44% in 2021, and the median payout fell about 4% which translates to $1,786.

According to Gusto payroll insights, the overall promotion rate was at just 10.27% in May of 2025, down from a peak of 14.48% in May 2022. Considering the fact that this was during the tight post-pandemic labor market, this signals a notable slowdown in internal career progression.

According to Bankrate’s 2025 Jobs & Pay Report, just 57% of workers received a pay increase in the past year, while only 13% found a better-paying job. Perceptions are hardening 62% say their income hasn’t kept up with inflation and 42% lacking confidence in future wage gains. Even planned salary growth isn’t lifting spirits as employers are targeting a 3.5% salary budget increase in 2026, down 0.1% from 2025.

At the same time, 83% of employers are favoring horizontal salary increases for all staff, instead of paying a premium for specialized skills or critical roles. Looking ahead, employers are thinking of promoting fewer employees in 2026 about 9% of their workforce. This number has stumbled down from 10% in 2025, with promotion-linked pay increases averaging 8.7% when they do occur.

America’s labor market is cooling after years of tight competition. As employers shift toward cautious budgeting, workers are finding that upward mobility is now more tentative. Promotions are becoming a scarcer currency, and in many firms they’re being rationed in ways that reinforce the very stagnation that made mid-decade labor markets feel so favorable.

Which sector had received the highest number of internship applications in 2025?

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