From the Phoenix Business Journal.

The Arizona Department of Commerce reported Friday that seasonally adjusted unemployment in metro Phoenix increased from 8.4 percent in January to 9.3 percent in February.

Yikes, that’s a pretty dang steep increase for one month! That can’t be good for the residential real estate market.

Still, Arizona’s construction industry had an increase of 1,300 jobs in February, marking the first time since September 2007 the sector hasn’t lost jobs.

Construction bottomed out last year and is headed for a better-than-last-year-but-still-terrible year. Nevertheless, the tend will be up for, what, a couple of years or more? So, that’s good.

Government posted the state’s largest net job gain, adding 9,300.

Yep, that short little article says it all.

ADDED: More signs Arizona builders are on the upswing.