Fieldstone Investment Corp., a Columbia-based mortgage banking company that specializes in nonconforming single-family residential mortgage loans, announced it is planning to reduce its number of wholesale operation centers from nine to three.

The goal is to consolidate the firm into fewer but larger operations centers, which will improve efficiency and lower operational costs in 2007. Aside from closing down branches, Fieldstone also will reduce staff by nearly 125 jobs, cutting 14 percent of its work force.