builders cut prices to sell homes, page-7

Extract from my previous post:

Jobs

A slower housing sector may mean fewer jobs in mortgage lending, real estate and construction.

Since 2001, the housing market accounted for 50 percent of U.S. economic growth and more than half of private payroll jobs creation, according to a report in August by Merrill Lynch & Co., the world's largest securities firm.

U.S. mortgage lenders will trim 10 percent to 15 percent of their record 535,000 employees next year, said Orawin Velz, director of forecasting at the Mortgage Bankers Association.

``We're expecting a decline in employment because we expect the volume of originations to decline pretty significantly next year -- 20 percent,'' Velz said.

The number of mortgage applications fell to the second- lowest level this year in the week ended Dec. 16, according to the mortgage bankers' group.

Consumer Spending

The decline in home sales and price appreciation next year may slow consumer spending and economic growth".