Ditech to cut 450 jobs after call center closes in 2019

Ditech will eliminate 450 positions when it closes its Rapid City, S.D., call center late next year, as the company seeks to regain profitability after emerging from bankruptcy.

The news was first reported in the Rapid City Journal on Aug. 16, and later confirmed by Ditech.

This location will close in November 2019 when the company's lease expires.

"This outcome has been part of a thorough evaluation process in selecting the locations that will best accommodate our long-term business requirements and the needs of our customers," Ditech said in a statement. "Over the next 16 months we will continue to have a strong leadership presence in Rapid City in an effort to ensure a smooth transition and to minimize any impact to our customers."

The layoffs will take place over time until the office closes.

Ditech has not yet filed a WARN notice with the South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation.

Ditech had 3,600 full-time employees at the end of the second quarter, down from 4,400 on June 30, 2017, the company's second-quarter Securities and Exchange Commission filing said.

Ditech lost $40.5 million in the second quarter, its first full reporting period since exiting bankruptcy protection in February. The company funded $2.6 billion in the quarter, nearly 38% less than the $4.2 billion it did in the second quarter last year.

"Our second-quarter performance did not meet our expectations, and we are continuing to take actions that we believe will help the company return to sustained profitability," Tom Marano, who assumed the CEO and president roles after Ditech exited Chapter 11, said in its earnings press release.

Before its bankruptcy filing last November, Ditech planned to reduce its operations to three "core" locations in Fort Washington, Pa., Jacksonville, Fla., and Tempe, Ariz., as well as one core site in Houston for Reverse Mortgage Solutions. Part of the plans included closing an Irving, Texas, office that employed 437 people. Furthermore, it would evaluate the other eight locations on whether it would keep those open.