Mortgage job listings topped out in July 2005 then trended down until late last year. A spike in postings hit in January.

The average estimated salary for mortgage positions was $42,000.

Among the open jobs were 603 sales positions and 450 sales managers. Salary estimates for these jobs mostly ranged between $60,000 and $80,000.

Salary estimates for the 443 available mortgage loan officer jobs primarily ranged between $90,000 and $130,000.

There were 418 openings for mortgages underwriters with an average salary of $52,000.

Lenders were looking for 463 loan processors and 246 mortgage processors. These positions, which saw a more pronounced bounce in January than the overall industry, pay an average of around $33,000.

Salaries for mortgage closers and loan documentation specialists also averaged $33,000.

Bank of America had 1,173 jobs posted, while JPMorgan Chase had 924 and National City had 717.

The busiest city was New York, where 697 mortgage jobs were available. Dallas was next, with 646 available positions, then Houston, where 536 mortgage openings were. Minneapolis was No. 4, with 525 listings, then Jacksonville, Fla., where 524 open jobs were being advertised.