Layoffs Coming As OceanFirst Bank Shifts Away From Residential Mortgages

TOMS RIVER, NJ — OceanFirst Bank will lay off 114 employees in December, as the company shifts away from residential mortgages, a spokeswoman said.

The banking company, which has been operating in Ocean County for more than 120 years, notified the New Jersey Department of Labor of the impending layoff in a WARN notice filed in September. (WARN stands for Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification.)

The layoffs are part of what the company said is a "strategic decision regarding its residential loan origination business," said Jill Apito Hewitt, the company's spokesperson. The company currently has about 1,035 employees, she said.

OceanFirst, which built its business initially on residential loans when it opened as Point Pleasant Building and Loan Association in 1902, will be partnering with Embrace Home Loans, based in Rhode Island, in the coming weeks.

"Residential lending has become dominated in recent years by large-scale wholesale mortgage companies and financial technology firms, prompting many banks to re-evaluate their mortgage business models," Hewitt said.

"The partnership with Embrace will ensure that residential loan financing options remain available to the Bank’s customers and communities we serve," Hewitt said. "By transitioning our residential loan origination business model to this strategic partnership, OceanFirst will continue our focus on growing the commercial bank with significant investments to drive growth and profitability."

The employees slated to be laid off are mostly those in OceanFirst's residential mortgage section and they "will receive commensurate severance and career transition assistance," she said. The layoffs are slated to take effect Dec. 18, according to the WARN notice.