Weyerhaeuser Mortgage Buys Irvine-Based Firm

Weyerhaeuser Mortgage Co., the nation’s seventh largest mortgage banker, said it has purchased Irvine-based Premier Relocation Services Inc. and plans a major expansion of the firm’s sales force within five years.

Premier, which helps transferred employees sell homes and find new ones, began operating in June with 14 employees. It has staff in Orange County, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta.

Los Angeles-based Weyerhaeuser Mortgage Co., a subsidiary of publicly held Weyerhaeuser Co. of Tacoma, Wash., acquired 80% of Premier in the Nov. 3 sale. In exchange, Premier received a $4-million line of credit and a capital infusion of more than $500,000.

The acquisition by Weyerhaeuser could enable Premier to increase its sales force to as many as 200 employees, handling more than 6,000 transactions per year, said John F. Walsh, a Weyerhaeuser financial analyst.

Premier so far has conducted about 25 relocations for Federal Express, its sole client to date, said Darlene Firestone, the company’s president and one of three co-founders. All three will remain with Premier.

For Weyerhaeuser, the purchase will bring increased sales of its peripheral insurance products plus an upswing in its mortgage business, Walsh said.