Dry credit markets hit contractors

Nationwide construction employment declined in September, with 35,000 jobs lost, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Washington, D.C.-based trade group Associated General Contractors of America, said things will get worse without an opening of credit markets. One Florida contractor reported that lenders who once required 20 percent equity were now requiring as much as 35 percent equity for financing of multi-family housing deals. He said that even at 35 percent, financing has dried up in the Florida apartment market.