Mortgage lender Wilmington Finance Inc., part of an American International Group subsidiary, announced it has eliminated its wholesale mortgage unit and will lay off 335 employees.

The Plymouth Meeting, Pa.-based firm, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AIG's American General Finance Inc., said it will continue a reduced retail operation, but the wholesale operation effectively ended yesterday.

WFI said it will honor the existing loan commitments in its mortgage banking pipeline. The firm's retail operation offers nonconforming residential real estate loans directly and wholesale through mortgage brokers and sells those loans to third-party investors.

The announcement said the elimination of 335 jobs will be complete by year-end and WFI will provide outplacement assistance to affected employees.

A spokesman for AIG said in addition to Plymouth Meeting, layoffs will take place in Charlotte, N.C.; Henderson, Nev.; and Livermore, Calif. WFI has been operating with 1,000 employees.

The action at WFI has been contemplated for some time as a result of the downturn in the mortgage marketplace and is unrelated to Sunday's management change at AIG, which saw Martin Sullivan replaced as chief executive officer by Robert B. Willumstad, said AIG spokesman Joe Norton.

Evansville, Ind.-based American General Finance Inc. and its subsidiaries are engaged in the consumer finance and credit insurance business. The company has assets of $29 billion and operates over 1,600 offices in 45 states, the United Kingdom, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

AIG said American General provides products and services for more than two million customers. The firm has 9,300 employees. It offers direct consumer and home equity loans, retail sales financing and other credit-related products.

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AIG Lending Unit To Lay Off 335

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