Edward Jones Mortgage Cites Regulatory Reform as Reason for Closure

*_Updated to add comments from a notice filed with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and to add comments from Wells Fargo._*

Citing changes in regulatory reform due to Dodd-Frank as the driving factor, ""Edward Jones Mortgage,"":https://www.edwardjonesmortgage.com/ejm/ based in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, will close its doors permanently in April.

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Edward Jones Mortgage, which reportedly employs 214 people, is a joint venture between San Francisco-based ""Wells Fargo"":https://www.wellsfargo.com/ and Des Peres, Missouri-based ""Edward Jones."":https://www.edwardjones.com/cgi/getHTML.cgi?page=/en_US/index.html

The office has been writing residential mortgages since 1998 and ceased writing them in January.

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""Regulatory reform stemming from the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act changed the rules for joint ventures of this type,"" said a spokesperson for Edward Jones.

""After discussing how those changes might impact the ongoing joint venture, Wells Fargo has decided to end the agreement,"" according to the statement from Edward Jones.

Wells Fargo said in a separate statement to TheMReport.com that it has ""decided to dissolve several of its Joint Venture alliances"" but added that it ""remain[s] committed to the joint venture business.""

├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├àÔÇ£The majority of the employees will be permanently laid off as of March 7, 2013,├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├é┬Ø according to the company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós filing with the Minnesota ""Department of Employment and Economic Development"":http://www.positivelyminnesota.com/.

Having already ceased writing new mortgages, Edward Jones Mortgage will officially shut its doors April 12.

""There will be no impact on existing mortgages sold through Edward Jones Mortgage,"" according to Edward Jones.

Additionally, any applications still making their way through the process ""will be completed as normal,"" the company stated.

As for the more than 200 employees being laid off, Wells Fargo said, ├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├àÔÇ£We are working with these individuals to help them find opportunities to apply for jobs within Wells Fargo.├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├é┬Ø