Rising Housing Costs and Spouse Career Assistance Are Top Concerns for Relocation Professionals

Human resources executives of global companies are most concerned about rising housing costs and increasing requests from transferring employees who want additional spouse career assistance, according to a survey from Cartus Corporation, a leading provider of global relocation services.

The survey of more than 150 human resources and relocation professionals was taken at the recent Worldwide ERC meeting held in Las Vegas.

When asked, "In what areas have you seen relocation costs rise dramatically in the past year?" relocation managers ranked the following as their top five areas of concern:

1. Housing
2. Temporary Living
3. Household goods shipments
4. Compliance
5. Schooling

"Housing costs and temporary living expenses are the top two areas of concern for relocation professionals worldwide," says Michelle Vallejo, Cartus senior vice president, Account Management, Americas. "Additionally, the Cartus survey found that relocation professionals need to find additional ways to help their transferring employees get assistance for their spouses and also look for ways to provide additional settling in services."

When it comes to benefits, human resources professionals say their relocating employees are increasingly asking for additional help for spouses as well as settling in services.

The following are the top four employee requests when asked, "In which areas have you seen more requests for coverage?"

1. Spouse Career Assistance
2. Global Settling-in Services
3. Pets
4. Elder Parents

Last, when asked "Which demographic group do you find the most demanding in terms of relocation benefits and process?" relocation professionals says Gen X'ers were the most demanding, followed by Millennials and then Baby Boomers.

For more information, visit www.cartus.com.