Joint analysis of the economic situation: idealo, immowelt and Stepstone debunk myths of the crisis

EQS-Media / 14.06.2023 / 09:30 CET/CEST

Press release

Joint analysis of the economic situation: idealo, immowelt and Stepstone debunk myths of the crisis

• Not everything has become more expensive: Around 40 percent of the 100 most popular product groups on idealo.de are stable in price or even cheaper
• Buying real estate is still affordable: In areas surrounding the largest cities, buyers save up to 44 percent on the purchase price, immowelt analysis shows
• 28 percent more jobs on Stepstone.de: Job seekers still have good opportunities in the labor market

Berlin/Düsseldorf/Nuremberg, June 14, 2023. First the Coronavirus pandemic, then the energy crisis and now inflation: many Germans feel that the economic situation has been getting steadily worse in recent years. Yet there are many areas of the economy where things do not seem so dramatic.

This is confirmed by reports from idealo, immowelt and The Stepstone Group. In a joint analysis, the three online platforms dispel false myths about online retail, real estate and the job market: Good bargains can still be made when shopping, home ownership is still affordable and the German labor market is proving to be robust.

Myth 1: There are no good bargains to be had when shopping? Wrong!

Not everything has become more expensive in recent years - this is now confirmed by an analysis of the price comparison platform idealo. While the price level of the 100 most popular product groups has increased by an average of 9 percent compared to the beginning of 2020 - around 40 percent of the product areas examined have either remained stable in price or even become cheaper: Wristwatches, for example, currently cost 18 percent less than in the same period in 2020, while sneakers are also available at an average six percent lower price.

In addition, the number of offers marked as bargains on idealo has increased by around 70 percent in recent years. "Especially in times of high inflation, many people rely on good deals," says Florian Kriegel, price expert at idealo. "Fortunately, there are still many bargains available now. It's just more important than ever to compare prices from different retailers online and to remain open for alternative offers."

Myth 2: The dream of owning your own home is over? Wrong!

Is the dream of owning your own home over despite the rise in interest rates? Not at all! Those who are able to compromise and move out of the big cities will find significantly lower real estate prices. With a commute of up to one hour, buyers in 9 of 14 of the major cities surveyed, save at least 25 percent on the purchase price of an existing apartment. The savings are greatest in the area surrounding Hamburg. The average purchase price of apartments that can be reached within one hour by public transport from the city center is currently 3,572 euros per square meter. That's 44 percent less than Hamburg's average price of 6,404 euros!

"The higher interest rates on construction have made it more difficult to buy property, so that home ownership is no longer financially viable for some people, especially in high-priced cities. But in the commuter belts of many cities there are still affordable apartments," says Daniel Raumer, Group Lead Market Analytics of immowelt. "In some cases, real estate prices there are still so low that buyers don't have to accept an overcharge due to financing."

Myth 3: The labor market is past its prime? Wrong!

The world of work is about to undergo massive changes – a labor shortage is being felt across all sectors, the ever-increasing use of artificial intelligence in the world of work fills some with concern. Wrongly so. Because the situation on the labor market is bright at the moment - and will probably remain so in the future. This is shown by current data from The Stepstone Group, one of the leading digital recruiting platforms, for the German labor market: Overall, 28 percent more jobs were advertised on Stepstone.de in the spring months of January to March 2023 than in the same period in 2020, i.e. before the Coronavirus pandemic. Applicants in the occupational groups of social services (+ 75 percent), logistics (+ 67 percent), hospitality (+ 54 percent), manufacturing & production (+ 54 percent), education (+ 53 percent) and administration (+ 51 percent) are particularly in demand.

"It is a fact that we continue to have significantly more job openings than we did before the pandemic. It is also a fact that, due to demographic change, there will not be enough people in Germany to fill all jobs in the future. By 2035, there could be a shortage of up to seven million workers," says Dr. Tobias Zimmermann, labor market expert at The Stepstone Group. "Automation and artificial intelligence have enormous potential to remedy this. But at the same time, they create new tasks and thus jobs that we need to fill." As The Stepstone Group's figures show, companies are already desperately seeking employees - a trend that will continue. The job market will continue to offer plenty of opportunities in the long term.

Calculation basis

idealo: Data based on average prices in the 100 categories with the highest demand on idealo.de. Period: Q1 2020 vs. Q1 2023

immowelt: The purchase prices were calculated on the basis of offers advertised on immowelt.de. The values calculated using hedonic methods reflect the average prices per square meter of existing apartments (75 square meters, 3 rooms, 1st floor, built in the 1990s) as of April 1, 2023. These are offer prices, not closing prices.

The Stepstone Group: The calculation is based on the average number of job ads placed online per day on the Stepstone.de website. These values were accumulated for the first quarter of 2020 and 2023 respectively. The calculation was also applied to individual occupational groups.

About idealo
With an average of 76 million monthly visitors in Germany alone, idealo is one of Europe's leading price comparison platforms. On idealo.de or in the idealo app, consumers can compare over 500 million offers from around 50,000 shops. This makes idealo a real price expert in the world of e-commerce. The company was founded in the year 2000, and is active in six different countries today (Germany, France, United Kingdom, Italy, Austria, and Spain). Around 1,000 employees from more than 60 nations work in the idealo headquarters in Berlin-Mitte, or, optionally, remotely.

About immowelt
immowelt is part of the AVIV Group, one of the largest digital real estate tech companies in the world.
The immowelt mission is to digitize all steps of the real estate transaction in the future in order to make it as uncomplicated and simple as possible for all parties involved. The basis for this is provided by the wide-reaching immowelt portals, which are among the leading real estate platforms in Germany and Austria and already successfully bring together owners, real estate professionals and seekers. immowelt supports the uncomplicated search for a rental property, the effective marketing of a property and customized financing of one's own four walls with data-supported services. Thanks to decades of experience and broad real estate expertise, immowelt thus creates the perfect experience of success for tenants and landlords, real estate professionals, property owners and buyers.
In addition to immowelt, other leading real estate online marketplaces in France, Belgium and Israel belong to the AVIV Group, which is part of Axel Springer SE.

About The Stepstone Group
The Stepstone Group is a leading digital recruitment platform that connects companies with the right talent and helps people find the right job. The Stepstone Group connects more than 110 million job applications with over 150,000 employers every year. With its integrated platform, the Stepstone Group automates the recruitment process and offers AI-based solutions that cover the entire recruitment process – from sourcing to engaging and hiring. In 2022, The Stepstone Group generated revenue of around €1 billion. The Stepstone Group operates in more than 30 countries - including Stepstone in Germany, Appcast in the USA and Totaljobs in the UK. The company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany and employs around 4,000 people worldwide.

Contact

The Stepstone Group Media Relations

press@stepstone.com

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Language:

English

Company:

The Stepstone Group

Völklinger Straße 1

40219 Düsseldorf

Germany

Internet:

https://www.thestepstonegroup.com/de/

EQS News ID:

1656237

End of News

EQS Media

1656237 14.06.2023 CET/CEST