Job growth seen in metro areas hit hardest by the bust

In November, jobs grew in metro areas where home prices dropped at least 30 percent during the bust, but construction employment slipped slightly, the Wall Street Journal reported on its blog.

In November, construction employment fell month-over-month and grew just 0.3 percent versus three months ago, compared with total employment growth of 1.3 percent (seasonally adjusted annualized rates). Total employment is up 1.9 percent from its recession low, but construction employment is up just 0.8 percent from its bottom in January 2011 (cumulative rates).

Job growth anywhere will boost housing demand, but metro areas that were hit the hardest ––what the Wall Street Journal has termed “clobbered cities” –– are in more desperate need of house sales to help their local markets recover. Jobs grew in these areas 1.9 percent in October relative to three months ago (seasonally adjusted annualized rate, preliminary figures).

Among the “clobbered cities,” job growth was especially high in Riverside-San Bernardino, Phoenix, and Tampa, but other Florida metros – like Jacksonville and Orlando – lost jobs in the last quarter. And Detroit-area employment contracted by an annualized rate of almost 6 percent.

For more information on the state of jobs in general and the “clobbered cities,” click here.