Real estate sector sees 300 new jobs in May

While the New York City real estate sector gained 300 jobs in May, according to the Eastern Consolidated monthly unemployment report, the construction industry (which is in its own class in the Eastern report) is continuing to suffer, losing 2,000 jobs month-over-month. The precipitous drop comes on the heels of ongoing instability in the construction sector — the industry has lost a total of 900 jobs so far in 2010, a .8 percent decline.

The real estate industry, meanwhile, has shown marked improvement in New York City since the end of 2009. Eastern ranks the field among the top job-creating industries in New York City so far in 2010, coming in just below banking, with 3,600 new positions created. The growth marks a 3 percent increase in the number of jobs since the beginning of the year.

Overall, New York City added 5,000 new private sector jobs last month, according to the report. The total job growth for the city was 22,800 — although the report noted that the number was skewed by temporary census hiring.
— Amy Tennery