Southern California real estate bosses add 5,600 workers in May

Real estate hiring heated up in May across Southern California, with staff additions running 39% faster than the seasonal norm.

My trusty spreadsheet found the combined property-linked employment in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties was 837,800 in May – up 5,600 for the month.

To put the month’s staffing into perspective, note that in pre-pandemic 2015-19, 4,040 jobs were added in May on average. Note that many people who work in the real estate world are self-employed and are not tracked by traditional government job counts.

Yet the longer-term trends still seem sluggish. Looking back to May 2023, real estate work grew locally by 5,900 positions in a year – a 0.7% increase – versus a 12-month hiring pace averaging 14,300 since the Great Recession. That’s 59% less.

These hiring gyrations leave the property industry’s local job count 13,000 below its post-2009 employment peak. That pinnacle was reached in July 2022 – shortly after the Federal Reserve began cooling the economy with higher interest rates.

Rising financing costs tend to hit real estate hard. But the Fed’s inflation-fighting efforts have been frustrated by a job market that continues to show modest strength.

Think about other industries across Southern California. Those bosses had 7.15 million workers in May – up 14,200 jobs in a month. Over 12 months, non-real estate jobs are up 57,200 over 12 months, or a 0.8% gain.

And don’t overlook real estate’s job-market clout, with its share of local employment at 10.5% in May 2024. The industry’s hiring equaled 28% of all new local jobs for the month, 9.4% for the year, and 11.7% since 2010 and the end of the Great Recession.

By the slice

Who’s hiring? Here’s a look at key real estate-related employment niches in Southern California for May …

Trade construction specialists: 251,600 employed by contractors – up 2,300 for the month and up 2,000 over 12 months, or a 0.8% gain. Average May had 2,120 job increase. It’s 6,700 below post-Great Recession high (October 2023).

Building, civil, construction: 121,500 workers in various trades – up 600 for the month and up 600 over 12 months, or a 0.5% gain. Average is 540 job increase. It’s 2,000 below post-Great Recession high (October 2023).

Lending: 88,300 folks in various slices of credit work – up 100 for the month and off 2,800 over 12 months, or a 3.1% drop. Average is 100 job increase. It’s 36,600 below post-Great Recession high (December 2012).

Real estate services: 138,700 people handling transactions – up 500 for the month and up 500 over 12 months, or a 0.4% gain. Average is 640 job increase. It’s 4,700 below post-Great Recession high (December 2022).

Building supplies: 126,600 sellers of equipment and materials – up 800 for the month and up 2,100 over 12 months, or a 1.7% gain. Average aince 2010 and the end of the Great Recession. had 400 job increase. It’s 300 below post-Great Recession high (December 2023).

Building services: 111,100 jobs in commercial property operations – post Great-Recession high – up 1,300 for the month and up 3,500 over 12 months, or a 3.3% gain. Average had 240 job increase.

Geographically speaking

And here is real estate’s employment’s breakdown by metro area …

Los Angeles County: 439,900 real estate jobs – up 2,900 for the month and up 2,000 over 12 months, or a 0.5% one-year gain. An average May in 2015-19 had 1,400 hires. Jobs are 6,400 below post-Great Recession high (November 2019). Real estate equals 9.6% of all LA jobs.

Orange County: 216,100 real estate jobs – up 1,900 for the month and up 2,700 over 12 months, or a 1.27% one-year gain. An average May in 2015-19 had 1,200 hires. Jobs are 14,300 below post-Great Recession high (August 2018). Real estate equals 12.7% of all OC jobs.

Inland Empire: 181,800 real estate jobs – up 800 for the month and up 1,200 over 12 months, or a 0.7% one-year gain. An average May in 2015-19 had 900 hires. Jobs are 4,300 below post-Great Recession high (October 2023). Real estate equals 10.7% of all IE jobs.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com