The employment situation improved in January, as the most recent government figures show what is the fifth straight monthly drop in the jobless situation.
The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report showing the unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent in January, down from the previous month's figure of 8.5 percent. The unemployment rate has not been this low since February 2009.
"We've created 3.7 million private sector jobs over the last 23 months," said Hilda Solis, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor. "January's job growth was the strongest in nine months."
There were approximately 243,000 jobs added in January, the report noted. This is a marked increase compared to the 203,000 created in December and 157,000 in November. However, nearly 13 million Americans are still unemployed, and 8.2 million are considered underemployed.
The continued improvements in the job market may be reflective of the continued rises in the residential housing market. Mortgage applications have witnessed a strong start to 2012, while mortgage rates have continued to stay at affordable levels.