Norwest Corp. Reportedly Wants Directors Mortgage of Riverside

Norwest Corp. is negotiating to acquire Directors Mortgage Loan Corp., the nation’s largest privately held mortgage company, according to a published report.

Citing industry sources, trade newspaper American Banker said in its Tuesday editions that Norwest was close to completing the deal and could pay up to $250 million for the Riverside-based company, which put itself up for sale in September.

The acquisition would give Norwest a large presence in California, the paper said.

Norwest spokesman Larry Haeg declined to comment on the report. Ray Crebs, president of Directors Mortgage, could not be reached for comment. The company made $10 billion in loans last year.

Minneapolis-based Norwest is one of the nation’s biggest mortgage lenders. The bank will have originated $25 billion in loans by year’s end, Haeg said.

Norwest has been expanding its mortgage business through acquisitions. It announced plans in August to acquire the mortgage unit of Michigan National Corp., Haeg said.