GE Shocker: WMC Cuts 50% of Work Force

The General Electric-owned WMC Mortgage, Burbank, Calif., a top-ranked subprime lender, on Thursday laid off 50% of its work force -- roughly 771 full-time positions.A company spokeswoman confirmed the job cuts to MortgageWire. WMC has just two wholesale offices remaining -- its Burbank location and one in Orangeburg, N.Y. A year ago it had nine. The spokeswoman declined to give a breakdown on what positions were cut. She said WMC -- which GE bought a few years back -- is "committed" to the subprime business. In March WMC laid off 20% of its staff, or about 460 workers. Industry sources say the company has had huge buyback requests from secondary-market investors. The spokeswoman said she could not address the issue. WMC Mortgage can be found online at http://www.wmcdirect.com.