Freedom to Buy Irwin Mortgage Ops

Freedom Mortgage Corp., Mount Laurel, N.J., has announced an agreement to acquire the mortgage production operations of Irwin Mortgage Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Irwin Financial Corp., Columbus, Ind.The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "Through this purchase, we acquire Irwin's deep distribution channels and gain access to their talented work force," said Freedom chief executive Stan Middleman. "It creates an instant presence for Freedom in many desirable markets. The Irwin footprint complements ours with virtually no redundancy." Freedom serves primarily the mid-Atlantic, Northeast, and California through the Northwest, but the acquisition of Irwin will expand its reach into the Southeast, the Midwest, Arizona, and Florida and add nearly 40 offices, Freedom said. Will Miller, chairman of Irwin Financial, said Irwin wants to focus its attention on the growth of its small-business and nonconforming consumer mortgage business. Freedom's purchase does not include Irwin's mortgage servicing operations and its mortgage servicing asset, each of which is being marketed separately. Classic Strategies Group LLC advised Freedom Mortgage and JPMorgan advised Irwin Financial. Irwin can be found online at http://www.irwinfinancial.com.