The real estate bosses in Southern California fought off the economic chill of higher interest rates last year, racking up their biggest hiring spree in seven years.
My trusty spreadsheet says property-related employment in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties was 803,800 in December 2023 – after a 12-month gain of 24,300 or 3.1%. This was the biggest employment increase since 2017 as these real estate niches have averaged 16,600 new local jobs a year since the end of the Great Recession.
A construction boom – including massive public infrastructure projects – was a major jobs driver that came despite a chunk of real estate suffering from the economic weight of costlier financing. Note that many people who work in the real estate world are self-employed and are not tracked by traditional government job counts.
Now, real estate hiring wasn’t unique. Across Southern California, employment in all other industries was 7.4 million workers in December – up 141,200 over 12 months, or a 2% gain. Note: Real estate’s share of local employment was 9.8% in December 2023, but it equaled 14.7% of Southern California hires for the year.
By the slice
Real estate hiring patterns were mixed across the region’s property-linked industries, as staffing grew in building trades and commercial real estate while other bosses had minor trims in workforces.
Let’s look at how key employment niches in Southern California fared in 2023, ranked by hiring performance …
Trade construction specialists: 264,900 employed by contractors – up 14,100, or a 5.6% gain.
Building services: 115,200 jobs in commercial property operations – up 6,400 over 12 months, or a 5.9% gain.
Building, civil, construction: 124,200 workers in various trades – up 5,000, or a 4.2% gain.
Real estate services: 143,700 people handling transactions – off 200, or a 0.1% drop.
Lending: 102,700 folks in various slices of credit work – off 400 over 12 months, or a 0.4% drop. This niche remains 13,300 jobs below pre-pandemic levels.
Building supplies: 53,100 sellers of equipment and materials – off 600, or a 1.1% drop.
Geographically speaking
Here is the real estate hiring breakdown, by metro area, for 2023 …
Los Angeles County: 379,100 real estate jobs – up 10,600 over 12 months, or a 2.9% one-year gain. Property jobs equal 8% of all LA workers in December.
Orange County: 232,900 real estate jobs – up 4,700 over 12 months, or a 2.1% one-year gain. Property jobs equal 13.4% of all OC workers in December.
Inland Empire: 191,800 real estate jobs – up 9,000 over 12 months, or a 4.9% one-year gain. Property jobs equal 11.1% of all IE workers in December.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]