Analysts at Trulia say that housing sector-related job growth outperformed growth in every other employment area in the country in February, which saw positive gains overall gains. The Department of Labor reported a 1.5% year-on-year gain for the month as the economy added 236,000 new jobs, 48,000 of which were in the construction industry. Housing-related jobs remain 28% below their peak, but gains in the home finance and home supply sectors are also helping bring the numbers around. For more on this continue reading the following article from TheStreet.
The recovery in the housing sector is beginning to contribute significantly to employment growth in the United States.
The economy added 236,000 jobs during February, the Department of Labor said Friday, beating expectations for just 160,000, among economists polled by Thomson Reuters.
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According to Trulia’s chief economist Jed Kolko, employment growth in housing-related sectors outperformed overall employment growth.
While overall employment is up 1.5% year-over-year, residential construction jobs are up 3.1% , while all other housing-related jobs in manufacturing, finance, real estate and trade have risen 2.7%, the economist noted in a blog post.
Construction activity is picking up on the back of a housing recovery, with the number of units under construction jumping 29% in January. So it is no surprise that construction jobs saw robust growth in February.
About 48,000 construction jobs were created on a seasonally adjusted basis in February, with residential construction adding 8,500 jobs, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
"Residential construction employment is up 3.1% — twice the overall employment growth rate of 1.5%. But other sectors are seeing job growth, too: employment among housing-related wholesalers and retailers – like building-supply stores – is up 2.0%, and job growth is up more than 10% in mortgage and housing-related finance jobs, too," Kolko wrote.
Housing-related employment is up 5% from its trough but it is still 28% below its peak. Residential construction, too, remains 39% below its peak.
This article was republished with permission from TheStreet.
