Mortgage Employment Slips Slightly

Employment in the mortgage industry leveled off in August and September, according to the latest employment report, with a loss of 1,000 jobs in September.U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released on Friday shows full-time employees in the mortgage banker/broker section totaled 422,000 in September, down from 423,000 in August. (The BLS report does not reflect the firing of temporary and contract workers seen recently in the industry.) The October jobs report released on Friday also show that employment in the overall economy grew by 125,0000 in September and October, which signals the economy is starting to generate jobs. The manufacturing section lost 24,000 jobs, which is below the 53,000 average for the past 12 months. (There is one-month lag in mortgage employment data due to changes BLS made to its monthly employment report this spring.)