DALLAS, Aug. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Hirings at U.S. mortgage firms outpaced layoffs by more than 8,000 in the MortgageDaily.com Second Quarter Mortgage Employment Analysis. One company had more impact on mortgage employment than any other.
Lenders laid off 3,229 employees between April 1 and June 30, according to the analysis. Layoffs were about 71 percent fewer than in the first quarter and 31 below the same period last year.
"The latest period reflected consolidation as a result of several high-profile mergers during the past year," MortgageDaily.com Founder and Publisher Sam Garcia explained. "Much of the layoff activity was concentrated at financial institutions."
North Carolina had over 700 mortgage-related layoffs -- more than any other state.
By lender, JPMorgan Chase & Co. shed the most positions.
At the same time, mortgage hirings picked up -- with lenders bringing on more than 11,000 new employees. Hirings jumped from more than 8,800 in the first quarter and skyrocketed from a meager 100 in the second-quarter 2008.
"An increase in both delinquency and loan modifications has forced mortgage companies to boost their servicing staffs," Mr. Garcia stated. "In addition, record low mortgage rates helped drive up demand for production personnel."
Hirings were strongest in Texas -- where more than 1,100 mortgage jobs were added. With more than 4,000 hirings, JPMorgan far exceeded all other mortgage firms.
Layoffs and hirings tracked in the report generally involved more than 50 employees.
The increased pace of hirings pushed overall activity to a positive 8,253.
Layoffs by Period
Period Layoffs Hirings Net Change
Q2 2009 3,229 11,482 +8,253
Q1 2009 revised 10,953 8,877 -2,076
Q2 2008 revised 4,678 100 -4,578
Net Gain by State
State Net Gain
California -423
(lowest)
Florida +595
Illinois +388
Michigan +89
New Mexico -105
New York +164
Ohio +95
Pennsylvania +125
Texas +1,078
(highest)
Virginia -291
