Irvine-based mortgage lender New Century Financial Corp. on Thursday said it was cutting 300 jobs, including 124 positions in Orange County.
The layoffs represent about 4% of the company’s total workforce, and are a result of the “turbulent environment” facing the subprime mortgage industry, a spokeswoman said.
It’s the biggest headcount reduction at New Century since the fortunes of the subprime industry, heavily rooted in Orange County, began turning in earnest last year.
Competitors including Orange-based ACC Capital Holdings Corp.’s Ameriquest Mortgage Co., have reacted to the changing market conditions with much larger layoffs.
The New Century layoff news comes a few weeks after the company warned of a loss for the recently ended quarter, projected a big drop in loans this year and said some 2006 results will be restated to fix accounting errors.
New Century’s shares have fallen nearly 50% since the early February disclosures.
