Monthly mortgage jobs inched down.

The mortgage sector held 502,100 jobs in July, down 800 from the prior month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced today. The latest number, however, is 8,600 better than a year ago.

People working real estate credit accounted for about 71 percent of July's mortgage employment, and the rest consisted of mortgage and nonmortgage brokers, the division of the U.S. Department of Labor reported.

Upcoming employment data will soon reflect layoffs reportedly expected at Regions Mortgage, Wells Fargo, Long Beach Mortgage Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Total nonfarm payroll employment improved by 128,000 in August, the bureau said, and the unemployment rate was nudged down from the prior month to 4.7 percent.