Sutter Closes on Progressive Purchase

Sutter Holding Co., San Francisco, has closed on the acquisition of Progressive Lending LLC, a mortgage bank with offices in Washington and Arizona.The purchase price of $1.5 million includes $500,000 in cash, a promissory note for $500,000, and 49,500 shares of common stock, Sutter said. The price is subject to reduction if Progressive does not earn at least $500,000 in each of the two years after closing. Progressive's senior management has agreed to stay with the company. "We believe this is the ideal time to partner with a company like Sutter in order to take advantage of the current turmoil in the mortgage origination industry," said William S. "Steve" Howard, president of Progressive Lending. Progressive is licensed to do business in California, Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, Illinois, and Montana as well as Washington and Arizona.