Lenders First Choice, a title insurance company in Simi Valley, closed its doors last week when its parent company shut down all operations outside of Colorado.

That left hundreds of employees at the Simi Valley location without jobs, and some say those employees also lost out on paychecks and vacation pay.

Mercury Companies Inc., the private holding company behind several real estate services firms, issued a statement last week saying that it shut down its operations in Arizona, Texas and California. The closures were effective July 29.

It attributed the closures to "rising economic pressures and a declining real estate market."

Mercury Companies, which is based in Denver, is keeping its Colorado companies open and running as usual.

The Houston Chronicle reported that a memo sent to employees said: "This decision was precipitated by an unexpected, and in our opinion, unwarranted and unjustified act by our syndicate of banks, which deprived us of the cash we needed to sustain and to continue those operations."

There is speculation that the holding company could file for bankruptcy.

In December, Mercury shut down Alliance Title Co., based in Campbell, Calif., generating complaints of employees not being paid.

The California labor commissioner has filed a lawsuit against Mercury. That suit is still in litigation, according to Erika Monterroza of the California Department of Industrial Relations.

Something similar may have happened to employees of other Mercury companies, such as Financial Title Co. and Lenders First Choice.

Monterroza said the state has received two complaints relating to the closure of Financial Title Co. Since the closures just took place last week, it could be a few days before the state knows the full scope, she said.

She said former Mercury employees with concerns should contact the state Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. They can start by calling the 24-hour hot line at 866-924-9757, followed by a call to a local office.

"If there's any kind of issue that they've not been paid, they need to open a claim on it so that it can be investigated," Monterroza said.

It's not clear how many people were employed at the Simi Valley location on Voyager Avenue when it shut down last week, although estimates put the number at about 200 or more. Messages left at Lenders First Choice and Mercury Companies were not returned Monday.

In 2005, Lenders First Choice put out a news release that it had expanded its Simi Valley operations, adding office space across the street from its existing building and more than doubling the capacity of its headquarters to 77,000 square feet.

At that time, the company employed about 200 people in Simi Valley and expected to add another 350 by the end of the year to handle the increasing demand for settlement services and title insurance.

The company has been downsizing for the past year or so, said Brian Gabler, director of economic development and assistant city manager for Simi Valley.

He said there's always a negative effect on residents when a business closes. "Hopefully, those affected will be able to find new employment soon," he said.

Neither the city nor the Ventura County Human Services Agency has received notice as required by law when there are plant closures or large numbers of employees laid off.

Human Services Agency representatives noted that employees can get services, such as help with preparing résumés or finding job leads, at the East County Job & Career Center at 980 Enchanted Way, Suite 105, Simi Valley.

Additional information is available at http://www.vchsa.org.