Housing Juggernaut Seen Spurring 500,000 New U.S. Workers

Paul Laney landed a job two months ago as a home inspector in Woodstock, Georgia, as the city added staff to oversee a growing residential construction industry. “I am really ecstatic about it,” said Laney, 52, who closed his own contracting business in 2007.

At a 19-home development being built by Windsong Properties off Main Street in Woodstock, about 30 miles north of Atlanta, people are being hired to sell homes, underwrite mortgages, install garage doors and security systems, and inspect finished construction.