Residential construction employment rose by 2,100 in July, the sector's first monthly gain in four months, according to a National Association of Home Builders analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The broader construction industry added 22,000 jobs, with nonresidential building accounting for roughly 20,000 of them.
Residential construction has lost a net 44,200 jobs over the past 12 months, with July marking the 17th consecutive month of year-over-year decline. The six-month moving average reflects losses of about 5,350 jobs per month.
Of the 3.3 million people working in residential construction in July, 914,600 were employed by builders and remodelers—down slightly from 915,100 in June—while 2.3 million worked as residential specialty trade contractors.
The construction unemployment rate fell to 4.6% in July from 6.2% in June, though it remains above the 4.2% posted a year earlier.
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