Real Estate: NAICS 531

About the Real Estate subsector

The real estate subsector is part of the real estate and rental and leasing sector.

The real estate subsector consists of these industry groups:

• Lessors of Real Estate: NAICS 5311
• Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers: NAICS 5312
• Activities Related to Real Estate: NAICS 5313

NOTE: There was a change in the definition of this subsector between NAICS 2002 and NAICS 2007. Some of the data below reflect the 2002 definition and some reflect the 2007 definition. See the BLS implementation schedule for NAICS 2007 to find out which BLS programs have already implemented NAICS 2007.

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in real estate. While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment, Unemployment, and Layoffs

Data series	Back data	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012	Aug. 2012
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)		1,420.9	1,419.8	(P) 1,417.3	(P) 1,412.1
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees		1,102.0	1,119.8	(P) 1,126.3
Unemployment
Unemployment rate		6.4%	6.9%	6.7%	6.1%
Layoffs
Mass layoff events		(1) -	4	(1) -	(1) -
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits		(1) -	269	(1) -	(1) -
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs

Data series	Back data	3rd quarter 2011	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012	2nd quarter 2012
Extended mass layoff events		(1) -	3	(P) 5	(P) 4
Separations		(1) -	392	(P) 1,111	(P) 611
Initial claimants		(1) -	392	(P) 1,109	(P) 876
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series	Employment, 2011
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks	49,380
General and operations managers	24,510
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers	34,630
Maintenance and repair workers, general
Office clerks, general	90,880
Property, real estate, and community association managers	110,810
Real estate brokers	34,220
Real estate sales agents	131,250

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for real estate.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in real estate.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees

Data series	Back data	Apr. 2012	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012
Average hourly earnings		$22.48	$22.49	$22.21	(P) $22.37
Average weekly hours		34.8	34.1	34.4	(P) 34.9
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees

Data series	Back data	Apr. 2012	May 2012	Jun. 2012	Jul. 2012
Average hourly earnings		$17.84	$17.57	$17.60	(P) $17.80
Average weekly hours		33.7	33.1	33.6	(P) 34.0
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series	Wages, 2011
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks	$17.06	$17.78	$35,490	$36,990
General and operations managers	$47.97	$60.34	$99,770	$125,520
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers	$11.06	$11.96	$23,000	$24,880
Maintenance and repair workers, general
Office clerks, general	$12.16	$13.10	$25,300	$27,250
Property, real estate, and community association managers	$23.97	$29.04	$49,860	$60,410
Real estate brokers	$28.38	$40.53	$59,030	$84,310
Real estate sales agents	$18.05	$23.86	$37,540	$49,640

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in real estate. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.

Data series	2008	2009	2010	2011
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	56	53	63	(P) 41
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	2.7	(1) 3.1	(1) 2.7
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	1.5	(1) 1.7	(1) 1.5
Cases involving days away from work	1.1	(1) 1.2	(1) 1.0
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.4	(1) 0.6	(1) 0.5
Footnotes (1) Industry scope changed in 2009 (P) Preliminary
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in real estate.

Establishments

Data series	Back data	2nd quarter 2011	3rd quarter 2011	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012
Number of establishments
Private industry		286,752	287,276	287,841	(P) 287,157
Local government		1,681	1,683	1,681	(P) 1,683
State government		29	29	29	(P) 29
Federal government		2	2	2	(P) 2
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

To learn about careers from an industry perspective, see the Career Guide to Industries.

 

Data extracted on: September 27, 2012