Mortgage Jobs Decline

Mortgage companies scaled back their payrolls by 5,900 full-time employees in January, as the decline in subprime originations and rising defaults took a toll on wholesalers and mortgage brokers.The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment in the mortgage banking/broker sector declined from 495,100 in December to 489,200 in January. Since October, employment in the mortgage industry has declined for three consecutive months, and 15,500 employees have lost their jobs. NMN's Quarterly Data Report shows that subprime originations declined by 18.2% during the fourth quarter, to $143.6 billion. Meanwhile, rising defaults have forced over 20 subprime lending shops to close their doors. The default rate on subprime mortgages rose to 10.12% during the fourth quarter, up from 7.07% in December 2005, according to a report by Friedman, Billings, Ramsey.