Unemployment figures that we hear, as bad as they are, are not the entire picture of todays unemployment. Tens of thousands of people have lost their (self employment) jobs within the real estate and finance fields within the last year alone. Real estate fosters many different self employment opportunities.  When the markets were good, the California Association of Realtors held their tests in locations that would hold thousands of applicants at a time. Tests were given monthly and often times several times a month.  Within the field of real estate alone, you have Appraisers, Loan Officers, Home Inspectors, Realtors, and Notories.  In addition to real estate, the financial markets also have been hit hard with self employed job losses.

Given how the mainstream media loves blockbuster headlines I am surprised how this has gone unnoticed and unreported.