Recently the Bureau of Labor Statistics released their June numbers. For the first time in a while employment levels in the Chicago metro area actually declined year over year – not by a huge amount but by 12,500. The unemployment rate surged to 7.1% from 6.3% the previous month but this was more a result of a large increase in the labor force that was not fully absorbed. Updated statistics of this and other measures significant to the real estate market are compiled here.