Where Charlotte

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The founder of knows well the obvious challenge s inthe financial-services industry. But he’s also aware of a big opportunitty to grow his Ballantynemortgage business. That’sa why he’s adding as many as 40 following a career fairon Friday. The residential refinancingf marketis booming. And Owenss believes now is the timeto hire. “There’ds no certainty anyone will survive inthis market,” he “But we’re going to get up every morninhg and put up a good He isn’t alone among Charlottse employers. Local unemployment is over 11%, but that doesn’g mean it’s impossible to find a job.
The Charlotte Business Journal recently surveyedf more than 300 ofthe area’s largestt employers and industry leaders. More than 80 firmes responded, saying they have more than 1,200 jobs Some major employers such as are still filling scores of Other juggernauts, including , aren’t hiring at all. Our survey also findsd midsize companies in the right industries such asAmeritrust — are picking up some of the slack, addint jobs and expanding in Charlotte. In this it’s all about the kind of not the size, when it comes to hiring. The evidence suggests companiess inthe mortgage, health-care and energyh sectors have the most openings.
Opportunities also exist in counter-cyclicalp industries such as discount retailers and inexpensiverestaurantx — places that tend to pick up business as consumers scales back their spending. “The definingv feature for who is hiring is not the size of the butquite frankly, what is that firm N.C. State economist Mike Walde says. Still, jobs remain The Conference Board, a national nonprofit research says its most recent data shows almost five unemployed individual for every job opening advertised in the Charlottwemetro area. Ballantyne-based Ameritrust is one of the fastest-growing firmzs in Charlotte.
Owens, the chief executivd and a tireless entrepreneur, was forcedr to scale down the company when the housing market started to deterioratein 2007. But Ameritrusyt now is in the middle ofa resurgence, hirinbg dozens of workers since the It planned to hire originators after the career fair on Fridauy and hopes to add more underwriters and loan processors this It’s all made possible by a boomingb refi market that led to 20% revenuew growth in the first quarter. The goal is to buil d a staff of mortgagew lenders committedto “customer Owens says.
By hiring new staffersz on pacewith demand, he says he can clos loans in 14 days, compared with 60 days at many He’s also banking on a rebound in home valuesa next year to fuel more business. Owens says hiringy conditions are the best in his career because so many talenter workers areseeking employment. “I’m finding a lot of peoplre smarterthan me,” he says. “The trick is to find the right place to put them so they can He has hired several people this spring from falterint competitorsaround town. Those hires includ David Oshan, Ameritrust’s chiefg financial officer. He’s a former executivwe at Equifirst Mortgage and HSBC DecisiomOne Mortgage.