Is a verification of employment still required within 10 days prior to closing a real estate loan?

Sounds like an investor requirement to me.

It is, but I thought with the ATR rules, it was required for all consumer mortgage loans to verify they could afford the payments?

Even in Appendix Q it only says: Creditors may assume that employment is ongoing if a consumer's employer verifies current employment and does not indicate that employment has been, or is set to be terminated.

There is no 10 day time requirement.

So to get an employer to verify that they are employed, you will either need to call them and get a verbal VOE or do a written VOE, correct?

Depends on what you are trying to accomplish - you mentioned ATR rather than QM. Are you making a QM loan or a loan under the general ATR requirements.