All these sellers, but where are the buyers?

Summary

Marketplace: All These Sellers, But Where Are the Buyers?
Host: Marketplace
Release Date: February 17, 2025

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Housing Market Hits a Snag: High Prices and Low Demand

The housing market, a significant component of the U.S. economy accounting for roughly 16%, has shown signs of weakness despite the overall economic resilience. Amy Scott opens the discussion with Samantha Fields, highlighting a recent Redfin report that indicates an increase in housing supply not seen in the past five years. However, this surge in inventory hasn't translated into higher demand.

Samantha Fields notes, “[Buyers] were certainly moving very cautiously in January” (02:29), citing Lisa Sturtevan of Wright MLS who attributes this slowdown primarily to persistently high mortgage rates. Fields elaborates, “Many of them were expecting mortgage rates to come down after the Fed cut interest rates last year; instead, they ticked up” (02:37).

The emotional landscape surrounding economic uncertainty plays a crucial role, as explained by Fields: “There’s a lot of psychology and emotion that goes into home buying” (02:50). Benga Adjalouri from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities emphasizes the impact of job security fears on purchasing big-ticket items like homes: “You’re not going to buy a house if you’re worried about a job” (03:06).

Darrell Fairweather of Redfin underscores the necessity of improved affordability for buyers to engage actively: “[Interest rates] come down even half a point, she thinks buyers will come off the sidelines” (03:43). The consensus among experts suggests that unless mortgage rates become more favorable, the housing market may continue to experience subdued demand.

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Rising Global Electricity Demand Amid Economic Shifts

Transitioning from real estate, Elizabeth Troval explores the surging global demand for electricity, a trend highlighted by the International Energy Agency (IEA). The IEA predicts a 4% annual growth in electricity consumption through 2027, effectively adding more energy demand equivalent to Japan each year (04:22).

In developed economies, electricity use had plateaued or declined over the past decade, but the landscape is changing. “In 2024, that changed,” Troval reports, referencing Todd Moss from the Energy for Growth Hub. The increase is driven by expanding data centers and the rise of electric vehicles (EVs), particularly in advanced economies like the U.S.

Gautam Jain from Colombia adds, “Most of the energy investment and infrastructure is going to be in Asia, Africa, Middle East, China, Southeast Asia, and South Asia” (04:55). These regions are experiencing rapid economic growth and an expanding middle class, fuelling the demand for energy-intensive technologies.

Aaron Chaum of the IEA comments on the environmental implications: “To meet additional demand for electricity, countries are turning to renewables and nuclear energy,” (05:22) aiming to stabilize global CO2 emissions growth. This strategic pivot is crucial in addressing climate change while accommodating increasing energy needs.

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College Closures: A Small-Town Crisis

The episode delves into the troubling trend of college closures across the United States, with Karen Fisher from the Chronicle of Higher Education providing an in-depth look. The closure of Wells College in Aurora, New York, serves as a poignant example of the broader crisis affecting small towns nationwide.

Dell Technologies recounts the unexpected announcement: “Wells just announced that it was closing. It took everybody by real surprise” (07:40). The immediate fallout from such closures extends beyond the educational realm, crippling local economies and essential services. The college, being the town’s largest employer and a key provider of services like the water treatment facility and community health center, left Aurora grappling with significant operational voids (08:36).

Fisher explores potential solutions, suggesting enhanced collaboration between colleges and communities to mitigate the impact of closures. “Are there ways that communities and colleges can work together more effectively to stave off some of these closures?” she asks (10:25). However, she acknowledges the complexity of the issue, noting that there is no simple fix to ensure financial stability for these institutions.

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Aging in Place: Navigating Accessibility and Affordability

In the “Adventures in Housing” segment, Samantha Fields introduces Kirsten Harrison's story from Golden Valley, Minnesota, highlighting the challenges and triumphs of aging in place. Harrison shares her experience of moving into a senior cooperative, emphasizing the community-oriented and supportive environment it fosters.

“We are in a two-bedroom unit, and our carrying costs are less than $1,500 a month, which includes cable, Internet, everything” (12:18). The cooperative model provides residents with amenities such as a solarium, guest rooms, and communal activity spaces, creating a sense of family and belonging. However, Harrison also points out the limitations, such as the absence of in-unit washers and dryers, although this hasn’t been a major issue for her family.

The segment underscores the importance of accessible and affordable housing options for the aging population, with 75% of older adults expressing a desire to remain in their homes as they age. Yet, 44% fear they won’t be able to do so due to various barriers, including financial constraints and accessibility challenges.

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Retail's Changing Landscape: The Closure of a Typewriter Shop

Sarah Leeson takes listeners to Arlington, Massachusetts, to witness the closure of Cambridge Typewriter, a beloved repair and retail shop operating for 57 years. The store's owner, Tom Furrier, shares his emotional farewell as he prepares to retire: “I’m not putting off retirement anymore. We’re just going to have to close the shop” (26:06).

Despite a steady flow of customers driven by a renewed interest in vintage typewriters, Furrier struggled to find a buyer to take over the business. The shop, which sees a mix of nostalgic enthusiasts and younger generations intrigued by retro aesthetics, represents the broader challenges faced by niche retail establishments in a digital age.

Customers like Maggie Caldwell and Charles Gilroy illustrate the diverse clientele that frequented the store. Caldwell seeks a typewriter for personal use, while Gilroy, diagnosed with Parkinson’s, relies on typewriters as an accessible tool for his daily needs. Furrier reflects, “The best part of my day is when I get to leave my workbench, come out here and geek out over typewriters with someone that I just met” (28:10), highlighting the community and passion that sustain such businesses.

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Government Challenges: Potential IRS Layoffs and Data Security Concerns

In the final segment, Amy Scott touches on the looming threat of layoffs at the IRS amidst efforts by Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to streamline federal operations. Reports indicate that Musk’s team is attempting to access sensitive IRS systems containing detailed financial information of taxpayers, businesses, and nonprofits.

A federal judge has expressed intent to rule swiftly on a lawsuit aiming to block Doge’s access to information systems at seven other federal agencies. This development raises significant concerns about data security and the integrity of federal financial information management.

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Looking Ahead: Upcoming Housing Data and Market Indicators

As the episode wraps up, the host previews the crucial housing data releases anticipated in the coming week. The Home Builder Confidence Index and January's housing starts and building permits are expected to show declines, potentially further highlighting the sluggishness in the housing market. Additionally, retail sales data from the Census Bureau indicates a notable downturn in furniture and home furnishing store sales, falling 10% from December, nearly double the decline in overall retail sales (16:35).

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Conclusion

This episode of Marketplace effectively navigates through the complexities of the current housing market, rising global electricity demand, the socioeconomic impact of college closures, challenges in aging in place, shifts in the retail landscape, and governmental data security issues. Through insightful interviews and detailed reporting, listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted economic and social factors shaping today’s landscape.

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Notable Quotes

• Lisa Sturtevan, Wright MLS: “Have just remained much higher than maybe” (02:35)
• Benga Adjalouri, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: “Imagine you work for a federal agency and you're suddenly wondering how long that'll be true” (03:06)
• Darrell Fairweather, Redfin: “With this housing market for a long time now, what people have been hoping for has been an improvement in affordability” (03:38)
• Kirsten Harrison, Golden Valley, MN: “For people who can afford it, you can age in place” (12:18)
• Tom Furrier, Cambridge Typewriter: “We’re just going to have to close the shop and people will have to, you know, find other means” (26:06)

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For more in-depth stories and updates, visit Marketplace.org.

Transcript

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[Dell Technologies]

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[Amy Scott]

Did you know housing makes up roughly 16% of the U.S. economy? We're going to talk about it from American Public Media. This is Marketplace in Baltimore. I'm Amy Scott in for Kai rysdal. It's Monday, February 17th. Good to have you with us. One of the weaker pillars of this relatively strong economy has been the housing market, with the combination of high prices and interest rates plus a low supply of homes for sale. But that last part supply has been picking up lately. A new report from Redfin says there are more homes for sale now than there have been at any other point in the last five years. Demand for homes though, is the lowest it's been since then. Marketplace's Samantha Fields looks into what's keeping would be buyers on the sidelines.

[Marketplace Host]

It has been a slow start to 2025 for the housing market. There's a lot of pent up demand.

[Samantha Fields]

Out there, but buyers were certainly moving.

[Marketplace Host]

Very cautiously in January. Lisa Sturtevan at Wright MLS says there are a couple of reasons for that.

[Samantha Fields]

The most obvious is that mortgage rates.

[Marketplace Host]

Have just remained much higher than maybe.

[Samantha Fields]

Some prospective homebuyers were hoping.

[Marketplace Host]

Many of them were expecting mortgage rates to come down after the Fed cut interest rates last year instead they ticked up.

[Samantha Fields]

But I think the biggest is really.

[Marketplace Host]

People feeling a little bit uncertain about the overall economy.

[Samantha Fields]

There's a lot of psychology and emotion.

[Marketplace Host]

That goes into home buying, and we.

[Samantha Fields]

Know that when consumer confidence falls, we.

[Marketplace Host]

Also see the housing market soften and consumer confidence has been falling. Right now, to put it simply, we're going through a chaotic period of time. Benga Adjalouri at the center on Budget and Policy Priorities says, imagine you work for a federal agency and you're suddenly wondering how long that'll be true. You're not going to buy a house if you're worried about a job. If you don't know where your next paycheck is going to come from, you can't make big purchases. Thinking about long term future when your short term future looks very uncertain. Ultimately, though, Darrell Fairweather at Redfin says with this housing market for a long time now, what people have been hoping.

[Samantha Fields]

For has been an improvement in affordability. And we haven't seen that.

[Marketplace Host]

If there are improvements, namely if interest rates come down even half a point, she thinks buyers will come off the sidelines, economic uncertainty and all. I'm Samantha Fields for Marketplace.

[Amy Scott]

Demand for housing may be down, but demand for electricity is headed up both in the US and around the world. A new report from the International Energy Agency predicts global demand will grow by about 4% a year through 2027. That's like adding more than the equivalent of Japan to global electricity consumption every year for each of the next three years. Marketplace's Elizabeth Troval has that one.

[Marketplace Host]

In some rich countries, electricity consumption has remained relatively flat or declined in the last 15 years. But in 2024, that changed. And in the next three years, the IEA expects many advanced economies, including the US to see growth in electricity demand driven in part by Data Centers and EVs. But it's emerging economies that will be responsible for 85% of the growth in global electricity demand in the next three years, according according to the report. Todd Moss is with the think tank Energy for Growth Hub.

[Dell Technologies]

We're talking about orders of magnitude differences.

[Marketplace Host]

In developing countries, and so most of the energy investment and infrastructure is going to be in Asia. Africa, Middle East, China, Southeast Asia and South Asia are some of the major drivers of demand growth, says Colombia's Gautam Jain.

[Amy Scott]

All these countries are obviously growing and.

[Marketplace Host]

The middle class is growing, and these are countries that are actually much more.

[Amy Scott]

Exposed to climate change, he says.

[Marketplace Host]

In countries around the equator, including India and Indonesia, days above 95 degrees Fahrenheit are more frequent, so there's a need for more air conditioning. To meet additional demand for electricity, countries are turning to renewables and nuclear energy, says the IEA's Aaron Chaum, basically stabilizing the global emissions growth. He found that CO2 emissions associated with electricity generation will roughly plateau in the next three years. I'm Elizabeth Trovall for Marketplace.

[Amy Scott]

U.S. markets were closed for President's Day. We'll have details when we do the numbers. Fewer people are going to college in this country than a decade ago. And with fewer students paying tuition, some colleges are having a hard time staying afloat. Karen Fisher is a senior writer at the Chronicle of Higher Education, where she wrote about what happens to a small town when its college closes. Karen thinks for being here.

[Dell Technologies]

Thanks for having me.

[Amy Scott]

I was kind of stunned by that number. An average of one college closed every week last year. What is causing this situation?

[Dell Technologies]

It was kind of a perfect storm of things. It's the combo of the declining demographics and there was Covid relief funding that was keeping a lot of colleges going through the pandemic. And that's all dried up and disappeared. And we just have a lot of colleges. So the competition for for students is pretty great. And so, you know, a lot of colleges have been kind of in precarious financial states for a while. And this is just a sort of a tipping point for a number of them, unfortunately.

[Amy Scott]

So you spent some time reporting in a town called Aurora, New York, where its small college, Wells College closed. Can you talk about what happened to Wells and what it's meant for the community?

[Dell Technologies]

Sure. Wells, like many of these other colleges, had been having some financial troubles for a long time. And it actually it's a liberal arts college or was a liberal arts college and it was a women's college. And it had gone co ed in part to try to sustain itself. But then this spring or last spring in April, it just announced that it was closing. And it took everybody by surprise. The students started registered for classes. The faculty members had signed their contracts. They took the community by real surprise as well. I mean, the college had just as recently as a few months earlier, assured them that their financial health was fine. And they just had never really contemplated, I think the community members, what it would be like not to have this college in the center of their town.

[Amy Scott]

Yeah. And you talk about the not only the economic impact, this is the town's largest employer, but also the effect on just basic services in the community.

[Dell Technologies]

Sure. I mean, colleges and medical centers, their anchor communities, I mean, they do have this great economic impact. They create jobs, they buy things in the communities, but they also, many of these towns have grown up around the college. And so they're very interconnected. In Wells case, the college actually ran the water treatment facility. And so all of a sudden the town just didn't even know how it was going to continue to go on, but you know, and have safe drinking water for its residents. Yeah, but there's also other ways. I mean, I think the people think of these places very much as, you know, they're cultural magnets, they are points of pride. They can be community gathering places. And all of a sudden that was lost to this town.

[Amy Scott]

Right. And the health center is hanging in the balance as well.

[Dell Technologies]

Yeah. So Wells is a very small college. And so it's years ago, in fact had sort of merged its college infirmary with the community health center in town. And so they used the college's kit bold infirmary space. And it was sort of a win win. It, you know, gave the college on site medical providers, but it also served as the only, the only community health center for about 15 miles, which in upstream New York in the winter is not insignificant. And because the college housed the community health center, now with the college campus, it's a future uncertain. So is the future of the community health center.

[Amy Scott]

And you write that this is not just limited to this town of Aurora, it's happening in small towns around the country. What kinds of solutions do you see to this problem of towns losing their economic lifeblood really in some cases?

[Dell Technologies]

I mean, I think there are questions about what can you do ahead of time. Are there ways that communities and colleges can work together more effectively in ways that maybe, perhaps it could stave off some of these closures? Were there things that towns can do, for example, the zoning that could help the colleges sell property or use it in more mixed ways? I think there's also the feeling, and it came out very clearly both in Aurora and Wells and some other communities that I talked with that also had pretty abrupt college closures. Communication would be really helpful. A lot of people said it's one thing for the college to shut down, but for it to shut down so abruptly and take us by surprise, that didn't enable us to do any kind of planning for what was next. But I don't think unfortunately there is any sort of magic bullet, some solution that's going to make colleges finances whole and avert other Auroras and other Wells is from going through the same thing.

[Amy Scott]

All right. Karen Fisher wrote the story. When Gown leaves town for The Chronicle of Higher Education, thanks for sharing your reporting.

[Dell Technologies]

Thanks, Amy.

[Amy Scott]

Coming back to the housing theme, according to AARP, most older adults, 75%, want to stay in their homes as they age. But at the same time, 44% don't think they'll be able to. Between accessibility issues and affordability, aging in place can be hard but not impossible. Which brings us to the latest installment of our series, Adventures in Housing.

[Samantha Fields]

My name is Kirsten Harrison. I live in a senior cooperative in Golden Valley, Minnesota. My mom, about six months after my dad died, we had a conversation. She was living in Omaha, Nebraska and wanted to move back to the Twin Cities area. And so she came to a visit and we took her to a couple condos and she liked them but didn't love that. And then we saw an open house at a cooperative. It was a senior 55 plus housing cooperative. So it's resident owned, resident run. And then if something breaks down, the cooperative is the one who comes in and either fixes it or replaces it. Midway through the tour, my husband whispers to me, you know, maybe we should be thinking of moving here whether your mom wants to or not. So she moved in one week and then we closed the week after. We are in a two bedroom unit and we paid 115,000 for the unit and our carrying costs. So monthly we pay a little less than $1,500 a month and that includes cable, Internet, everything. In our particular building we have a solarium, we have guest rooms, we have a woodworking room where people are doing woodworking and there's activities all the time. The one downside of our particular place is that we don't have in unit washers and dryers, but that's never been a problem for us. And now my husband's brother and his wife, who is my longtime best friend, have also moved into our co op. And so now we have like this big family affair at our core cooperative that we just love. It's like we're back in our dorm in college. Part of our appeal was that we could be in the same place as my mom and to not necessarily be on top of her. You know, she's kind of a medical obstacle course as far as various surgeries and orthopedic issues. And so for people who can afford it, you can age in place. And we've now gotten into a community that we didn't know we needed.

[Amy Scott]

Kirsten Harrison in Golden Valley, Minnesota, you know, we can't do this series without you. So wherever you are in your housing journey, tell us about it marketplace.org/ Adventures in Housing coming up.

[Dell Technologies]

As soon as I posted that we're closing March 31st, it went crazy. And it's been like this every single day, all day.

[Amy Scott]

Kind of makes you want to stay open, though, right? But first, let's do the numbers. Markets were closed today in observance of what the New York Stock Exchange officially calls Washington's birthday. Samantha Fields was telling us about the rough start the housing markets had so far this year. This is a big week for data on that market. We'll get the Home Builder Confidence Index tomorrow and January's numbers of housing starts and new building permits on Wednesday. Consensus is those numbers will be down. Maybe you can even see the sluggish housing market in the retail sales report for January that the Census Bureau put out on Friday. Sales at furniture and home furnishing stores were down 1 and 7. 10% from December, nearly twice the decline in overall retail sales. You're listening to Marketplace.

[Dell Technologies]

Foreign.

[Public Investing]

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[Amy Scott]

This is Marketplace. I'm Amy Scott Kentucky is recovering from heavy rain and flooding over the weekend with another winter storm on the way. At least 11 people died in the floods and more than a thousand had to be rescued. Flood risk is growing in many parts of the country due to climate change and when communities rebuild after disaster. The Federal Emerg Management Agency has a rule aimed at preventing repeat property damage in the future. It's known as the 50% rule. Carlisle Calhoun from the podcast Sea Change looks at how it's played out in two different communities.

[Marketplace Host]

90% of the entire historic town of Mandeville, Louisiana is in the FEMA flood zone. I'm getting a tour from Rod Scott and all the houses we pass are lifted up on pilings 12ft in the air. This is the one that's going up right now. Look at that. Scott's a contractor who specializes in elevating buildings. He's raised 1500 all over the country. Better breeze, better view. You don't have to flood. Scott tells me Mandeville has flooded 17 times in the last 18 years during storms and hurricanes. And when houses are significantly damaged, homeowners have to elevate because of FEMA's 50% rule. The rule says if your house is damaged and repair costs are over half of your house's market value, you can't simply repair your house to how it was before. Now almost all the buildings in historic Mandeville are perched high up on pilings. Houses, restaurants, stores, all up with the birds. Mandeville is the most flood adapted, retrofitted community on the planet right now. But it's expensive. Just a small house costs $150,000 to elevate. And most of the houses in Maneville are not small. Some homeowners here have shelled out a million dollars to raise their house. Homeowners insurance doesn't cover it. So almost everyone in Mandeville has paid out of pocket. So in this community there was enough wealth to write a check and do that. But 80 miles south of Mandeville, it's a different story. Reverend Tyrone Edwards is the council member in Point of Lahatch, a majority black town right on the banks of the Mississippi river because the law that FEMA created was forced to elevate and people can't afford it. Forest elevation, that's how a lot of people refer to the 50% rule. And point of Lahatch is at severe risk of flooding, I'm afraid because I know if a hurricane come today, this community can't rebuild. In this community, most residents don't have over 100 grand to elevate if their homes are severely damaged. There are FEMA grants available to help cover elevation costs, but demand is high and these grants are hard to get. So I had a grant to elevate the house. Like one of the few in this area that got the grant. That's Chadwick Uncleade, one of two residents in Point of a hatch who received a FEMA elevation granted after his house was damaged in Hurricane Katrina. Now his home sits 23ft in the air. The house is that high. I see over the levee. I can see the ships. I see everything. Beautiful view. Angole knows when the next storm hits, his elevated house will probably make it through all right. But his mom, Fergie Onclade, lives next door and her house is barely off the ground. Here we are. You know what's going to happen if, if something happens to my home? I don't have the funds to elevate.

[Kirsten Harrison]

You know, I don't have the funds to elevate anything.

[Marketplace Host]

It's easy to imagine Chadwick Enclave's house is one of the few that survived the next storm. And he's worried about his mom and his neighbors. This is a tight knit community and he says people don't want to leave. It's part of you. It's part of your being. So it's, it's like losing a part of yourself if you, if you leave. The goal of FEMA's 50% rule is to create safer communities. But what that often looks like on the ground is pay to go up or find a new place to live. In Point of La Hat, Louisiana, I'M Carlisle Calhoun from Marketplace.

[Amy Scott]

You may have noticed we do a lot of stories on this show about retail, because how stores are doing tells us a lot about what's happening in the economy, or in the case of this next story, how the economy has changed Marketplaces. Sarah Leeson went to visit a store that's closing its doors after 57 years.

[Kirsten Harrison]

Along the main thoroughfare of Arlington, Massachusetts, is a tiny typewriter repair and retail shop, Cambridge Typewriter. The place has been around so long that the phone number on the big sign above the front door doesn't even have the area code. It's packed on a Saturday morning amidst towers of typewriters, some refurbished and shiny, others clearly in need of some love. Customers edge around each other to look at what's in stock. Among them is Maggie Caldwell. She drove down from Bath, Maine, to see if she could snag a typewriter before the place closes.

[Marketplace Host]

My mom had a typewriter and, like.

[Dell Technologies]

It'S very nostalgic for me to, like, hear the click, clack sound. And now I have a little daughter.

[Samantha Fields]

And I kind of want to, like, bring that back.

[Kirsten Harrison]

She's browsing the where's with Tom Furrier, the shop's owner of 45 years.

[Dell Technologies]

You're probably gonna like this. I just acquired this like, 20 minutes ago.

[Samantha Fields]

Oh, my God.

[Dell Technologies]

This is way nicer than what I got over there. Okay, can I play around with it a little? I'm gonna put this over there for you.

[Marketplace Host]

Sure.

[Kirsten Harrison]

He puts down a Royal portable typewriter for her to check out. Tom has no shortage of customers these days.

[Dell Technologies]

As soon as I posted that we're closing March 31st, it went crazy. And it's been like this every single day, all day. I haven't got anything done at my bench, which is fine because I love, you know, meeting people and talking, you know, typewriters, but I need to fix some of these machines before I go.

[Kirsten Harrison]

Tom is turning 70 this year. He says he's ready to retire. Over the last year, he's tried to find a buyer for the shop, but it hasn't worked out.

[Dell Technologies]

I just said, that's it. I'm not putting off retirement anymore. You know, we're just going to have to close the shop and people will have to, you know, find other means.

[Kirsten Harrison]

There are more than 50 typewriter shops still operating across the US according to data from Old Bob's Old Typewriters, a website for typewriter enthusiasts. Yeah, they have those. Tom calls his store a break even kind of business, pulling in $130,000 a year these days, give or take. But the early 2000s saw an explosion of interest in typewriters as vintage came back into style. And there might be another reason. I think Taylor's given a resurgence to it.

[Samantha Fields]

Perhaps.

[Kirsten Harrison]

Megan Moraglia, a 23 year old studying for her MFA at Boston University, is of course referring to Taylor Swift. This is Megan's first time at the store, and she's here to see if she can get her family's typewriter fixed up.

[Samantha Fields]

She's really one to take retro aesthetics.

[Kirsten Harrison]

And revisit them and consider how they can be applied to the contemporary. Tom estimates about a third of his customers these days are young adults like Meghan. But not all first timers fit that category. Charles Gilroy is here from Hingham, Massachusetts. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's back in 2008.

[Marketplace Host]

My handwriting is so bad, some things come back to me where they can't read it in the post office. I've been trying to find a program for my computer that would be able to write down a check. I haven't been able to find one that you could just take like an envelope, stick it in and just, you know, line up the lines and write the check.

[Kirsten Harrison]

So a typewriter. Tom digs one out that seems like a perfect fit. It's an electric Corona Smith, and he tells Charles he'll sell it to him for just under $200 after he's gotten it fixed up. It's going to add to his repair backlog, which is about four months long.

[Marketplace Host]

Now.

[Dell Technologies]

The best part of my day is when I get to leave my workbench, come out here and geek out over typewriters with someone that I just met. You know, it's beautiful.

[Kirsten Harrison]

He still has about a month to make those memories and fix all those typewriters. In Boston, I'm Sarah Leeson for Marketplace.

[Amy Scott]

This final note on the way out today. Kai ended the show Friday talking about potential layoffs at the IRS as Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency work their way through the federal bureaucracy. Now several outlets are reporting the Doge team is trying to access an IRS system that includes detailed financial information about every taxpayer, business and nonprofit in the country. Meanwhile, a federal judge said today she hopes to rule within 24 hours in a lawsuit aimed at blocking Doge's access to information systems at seven other federal agencies. Our daily production team includes Andy Corbin, Iru Ekpene, Nicholas Guillong, Maria Hollenhorst, Sarah Leeson, Sean McHenry, and Sophia Terenzio. I'm Amy Scott we will see you tomorrow. This is apn.

[Marketplace Host]

Colon cancer is considered one of the most preventable but least prevented cancers. That's why screening for colon cancer is critical. Sometimes people want to avoid the drama of screening with a colonoscopy. You know, the prep, the downtime, all of it. Thankfully, there's the Cologuard test, a non invasive screening option for adults 45 and older at average risk that is delivered right to your door. Early detection is critical. When caught early, colon cancer is survivable in 90% of the cases with the Cologuard test. The process is simple. The test is delivered to your door. You send the sample back to the lab and get results within two weeks. The best part? The Cologuard test is covered by most insurance plans. The Cologuard test is intended to screen adults 45 and older at average risk for colorectal cancer. Ask your healthcare provider about screening with cologuard. Cologuard is available by prescription only. Visit cologuard.com to learn more.