Mortgage Jobs Decline

Mortgage companies cut their payrolls by 800 full-time positions in July, and it could be the beginning of further declines in industry employment.The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Sept. 1 that employment in the mortgage banker/broker sector fell from 502,900 in June to 502,100 in July. The original estimate for June was revised downward from 503,100. Mortgage originations were unexpectedly strong in the second quarter. But loan applications declined dramatically in July, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly applications survey. Despite declining loan volume (particularly refinancings), employment has been surprisingly steady all year, according to the MBA's director of forecasting, Orawin Velz. Ms. Velz said she suspects that companies are laying off loan officers and hiring for their servicing shops. And these "substitutions" have keep employment at a high level so far. "We haven't seen the decline in industry employment yet, but that could be forthcoming," she said. The MBA economist sees a continuing decline in originations into next year as the housing market adjusts and normalizes, which would usually force mortgage companies to shed employees. The BLS can be found online at http://stats.bls.gov, and the MBA can be found at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.