DALLAS, Nov. 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The number of people working in the mortgage business moved down on a quarterly basis. Hiring activity has significantly slowed, and the contraction is likely to continue.
An estimated 655,600 people were employed in the mortgage industry as of June 30, 2017. The estimate was based on a Mortgage Daily analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data and origination market share.
Included in the estimated total were 250,300 mortgage jobs at banks, 64,000 home-lending jobs at credit unions and 341,300 non-bank mortgage jobs reported by the BLS.
Overall staffing in real estate finance declined from a downwardly revised 657,800 as of the end of the first quarter and a downwardly revised 609,800 as of mid-year 2016.
Estimated Mortgage Staffing
| Type | Q2 2017 | |
| Banks | 250,300 | |
| Credit Unions | 64,000 | |
| Non-Banks | 341,300 | |
| Total | 655,600 |
More recent data indicate that mortgage staffing has expanded to an estimated 657,100 as of Sept. 30, 2017.
As part of its Second Quarter 2017 Mortgage Employment Index, Mortgage Daily tracked 1,649 mortgage layoffs, more than the thousand tracked three months earlier.
In addition, 1,955 mortgage hirings were tracked during the most-recent period. Hirings have slowed considerably from over 3,700 one year earlier.
The second-quarter 2016 net gain of 306 jobs was less than 1,122 in the first quarter and 1,812 in the second-quarter 2016.
Mortgage Employment Index
Job Gains/Losses
| Layoffs/Hirings | Q2 2017 | |
| Layoffs | 1,649 | |
| Hirings | 1,955 | |
| Net Gain/(Loss) | 306 |
Wisconsin was the state where the biggest mortgage job gains were made during the latest period, though the Grand Canyon State and the Lone Star State were close behind.
Biggest Job Gains by State
| State | Net | |
| Wisconsin | +314 | |
| Arizona | +250 | |
| Texas | +217 | |
| New Jersey | +41 | |
| Missouri | +38 |
A preliminary review of third-quarter 2017 activity indicates that hiring activity has plummeted to fewer than 500 jobs -- indicating substantial deterioration is likely with net gains from the current three-month period.
In the Sunshine State, mortgage job losses came to nearly 500 during the second-quarter 2017. That turned out to be the largest decline of any state and more than double No. 2.
Biggest Job Losses by State
| State | Net | |
| Florida | -484 | |
| New York | -225 | |
| Ohio | -100 | |
| Illinois | -80 | |
| California | -75 |
With in excess of 600 jobs added to its payroll, Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp. had the biggest net gain in staffing of any home lender during the three months ended June 30, 2017. It was the second consecutive quarter Fairway topped the list. Also significantly beefing up its staff was Caliber Home loans Inc.
Biggest Job Gains by Company
| Company | Net | |
| Fairway | +628 | |
| Caliber | +434 | |
| Freedom Financial Network | +250 | |
| Guild Mortgage Co. | +240 | |
| PennyMac Financial Services Inc. | +110 |
At HSBC, the payroll contracted by more than 500 people -- by far the biggest net loss of any company during the quarter. The activity reflects HSBC's winding down of its consumer mortgage business.
Biggest Job Losses by Company
| Company | Net | |
| HSBC | -507 | |
| PHH Corp. | -252 | |
| Ocwen Financial Corp. | -200 | |
| loanDepot LLC | -174 | |
| Banc of California, N.A. | -139 |
Full Q2 2017 report is available to subscribers:
www.MortgageDaily.com/stories/MortgageEmploymentIndex110617.asp?spcode=pr
Historical Mortgage Employment Index data is at:
http://www.mortgagedaily.com/MortgageEmploymentIndex.asp?spcode=pr
Mortgage employment news:
http://www.mortgagedaily.com/MortgageEmployment.asp?spcode=pr
About Mortgage Daily
Founded in 1998 by 20-year mortgage industry veteran Sam Garcia, Mortgage Daily is a leading online source of mortgage news and mortgage statistics. Mortgage Daily also publishes the Mortgage Market Index and a ranking of the biggest lenders. Visit Mortgage Daily at www.MortgageDaily.com.
CONTACT:
newsalert@MortgageDaily.com