Career moves

Industry veteran Dale Kurland, a former managing director at Bear Stearns, has formed a new advisory firm, hoping to tap what could be a hot merger market for mortgage companies in the next few years."We anticipate a robust market for mergers, acquisitions, and overall consolidation in the mortgage business for the foreseeable future," said Ms. Kurland, who will serve as chief executive of her new firm, Classic Strategies Group LLC. The new company is based in New York. Prior to launching CSG, Ms. Kurland was a principal in DK Advisory Services. DKAS advised on several franchise-related deals, including the sale of First Town Mortgage, James Madison Mortgage, Knutson Mortgage, and others. In the early 1990s, Ms. Kurland was the head of mortgage banking M&A for Bear Stearns. CSG can be found online at http://www.classicsg.com.

Ted McGovern, chief executive of the EBS Building Society, has been named the new president of the International Union for Housing Finance.Mr. McGovern replaces Graham Hollick, group chief executive of Old Mutual Zimbabwe Ltd., who has presided over the group for the past year. The International Union for Housing Finance can be found on the Web at http://www.housingfinance.org.

The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization, a not-for-profit subsidiary of the Mortgage Bankers Association, has announced the appointment of its inaugural board of directors.The MISMO board consists of five members selected from the real estate finance industry and one ex-officio member elected from the ranks of MISMO's Governance Committee. Specifically, the new board includes Edward Godycki of Countrywide Financial Corp., Simi Valley, Calif.; Michael Petree of First Franklin Financial Corp., Irvine, Calif.; Michael Bixby of LandAmerica Financial Group Inc., Norcross, Ga.; Joseph Beggins of GEMSA Loan Services LP, Houston; Niraj Patel of GMAC Commercial Mortgage, Horsham, Pa.; and Adam Hall of IndyMac Bank, Pasadena, Calif., who will serve as the ex-officio MISMO governance director. MISMO develops data-transfer protocols that reduce costs and increase investor confidence in mortgage transactions across the residential and commercial real estate finance industry. It can be found online at http://www.mismo.org.

Greg Jacobson has been named executive vice president and chief operating officer of KB Home Mortgage Co., a subsidiary of the Los Angeles-based homebuilder KB Home.A 20-year veteran of the mortgage industry, Mr. Jacobson was most recently chief executive officer of Closing Guard Inc., a multistate provider of real estate settlement services and mortgage-related software. He has also served as EVP/COO of Countrywide Warehouse Lending; president of Arlington Mortgage Investors; and managing director of Dryson Mortgage Finance Corp. KB Home can be found online at http://www.kbhome.com.

M. Wayne Lee, president of Argent Mortgage Co., has been named chief executive of corporate sibling Ameriquest Mortgage Co.Ameriquest Mortgage and Argent Mortgage are subsidiaries of Ameriquest Capital Corp., Orange, Calif. Ameriquest Mortgage is the retail unit, Argent the wholesale. Mr. Lee, who will remain as president of Argent, succeeds Kirk Langs. The company said Mr. Langs is retiring to spend more time with his family and pursue other interests. Mr. Lee became president of AMC Wholesale, the forerunner to Argent, in 2000. He has been with the Ameriquest organization for 20 years.

Manfred Schepers has been appointed senior managing director and head of The Bond Market Association International in London.Mr. Schepers, who has also been named an executive vice president of the association, was previously vice chairman of European Fixed Income, Rates & Currency at UBS. The Bond Market Association can be found online at http://www.bondmarkets.com.

Thomas S. Johnson, chairman and chief executive officer of GreenPoint Financial Corp., has been elected to the board of directors of Freddie Mac.Mr. Johnson has served as chairman and CEO of GreenPoint, a specialty mortgage lender and consumer banking company based in New York, since 1993. His banking career spans nearly 35 years, Freddie Mac said. Freddie Mac can be found online at http://www.freddiemac.com.

In a surprise move, Alex Pollock has resigned as president of the Chicago Federal Home Loan Bank to become a resident fellow at a Washington think tank.Under Mr. Pollock's leadership, the Chicago FHLBank broke with tradition in 1997 and began purchasing single-family loans to give its member banks and thrifts a secondary-market alternative to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Other FHLBanks have adopted his innovative Mortgage Partnership Finance program, which has generated $95 billion in mortgage originations. "I am exceptionally proud of the accomplishments of the Chicago FHLBank," Mr. Pollock said in a letter to employees. "However, it has been my plan for a long time, at this age (I am 61) to move to the broader area of national public policy issues." He is joining the American Enterprise Institute, which has held several seminars on privatizing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Chicago FHLBank plans to name his successor on June 30.

Richard F. Syron, Freddie Mac's chairman and chief executive officer, has been elected chairman of the board of the Freddie Mac Foundation.Two other new members of the board were also named: Michelle Engler, an attorney, a Freddie Mac board member, and a member of the board of managers of JNL Variable Funds Investment Cos.; and Dwight P. Robinson, Freddie Mac's senior vice president for corporate relations. Mr. Syron has previously served as chairman and CEO of the American Stock Exchange and president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston.

Christina Seix has resigned from the board of directors of Freddie Mac to avoid a conflict of interest that could arise from a pending acquisition of her investment advisory firm.Freddie Mac said Ms. Seix's firm, Seix Investment Advisors Inc., is being acquired by SunTrust Banks Inc., a Freddie Mac customer. Ms. Seix is chairman and chief executive officer of the firm. She has been a member of Freddie's board since 1990. Freddie Mac can be found on the Web at http://www.freddiemac.com.

Patrick F. Stone, a former chief executive officer of Fidelity National Information Solutions Inc., has been named to the board of directors of Digital Map Products, a developer of Internet-hosted mapping applications.Mr. Stone, whose career spans three decades, was also president and chief operating officer of Fidelity National Financial and president of Fidelity National Title of Oregon. DMP provides map-enabled software for the building, land development, and real estate sectors, among others. It can be found on the Web at http://www.digitalmapproducts.com.

W. Kirk Wycoff has been named chief operating officer of O'Neill Properties Group, King of Prussia, Pa.Mr. Wycoff is the former chairman and chief executive officer of Progress Bank, which merged with Fleet Bank earlier this year, and he was regional CEO of the Pennsylvania market of Fleet Bank. O'Neill Properties is a real estate development company focused on transforming abandoned properties into viable communities. Mr. Wycoff will be responsible for managing finance, development, marketing, property management, and operations, the company said.

Robert G. Prendergast has been named senior vice president and chief operating officer of Heritage Property Investment Trust Inc., Boston.Mr. Prendergast, 44, was most recently the company's vice president for property management and construction. He has over 20 years of experience in the real estate industry, managing shopping center and other retail office properties, the company said. Heritage also announced that David C. Sweetser, the company's vice president for business development, will assume responsibility for its property management and construction departments. Heritage can be found on the Web at http://www.heritagerealty.com.

Daniel Jacobs has been promoted to chief executive officer of 1st Metropolitan Mortgage, a Charlotte, N.C.-based national mortgage broker.In addition to directing daily operations and developing new business strategies, Mr. Jacobs will continue as director of corporate acquisitions for Empire Equity Group Inc., of which 1st Metropolitan is a division. Before joining 1st Metropolitan, Mr. Jacobs worked as branch, regional sales, and national sales manager for Empire, as well as vice president of business development. In that capacity, he designed a beta-test program that enabled loan officers to work from remote locations, ultimately leading to the acquisition of 1st Metropolitan, the company said.

Christopher T. Kelly has been named director and head of real estate in the structured finance group of CapitalSource Finance LLC, a specialized commercial finance company based in Chevy Chase, Md.Mr. Kelly has more than 17 years' experience in commercial real estate finance, CapitalSource said. He was a founding member in 1999 of CDC Mortgage Capital, where he has served as a managing director chiefly responsible for originating senior and mezzanine large-capitalization loans. He was previously a vice president and senior originator with Lehman Brothers when it was the market's most active originator of CRE whole loans and mortgage-backed securities, CapitalSource said. The company can be found online at http://www.capitalsource.com.

Kevin J. Brennan has been promoted to senior executive vice president of Carlton Advisory Services, a New York-based national real estate investment bank.Mr. Brennan, who joined Carlton in 1999, has over 20 years of combined real estate and finance experience and specializes in complex debt and equity placement, loan sales, and investment sales, the company said.

Diana Grossmann has been promoted to executive vice president at MortgageTree Lending, Modesto, Calif.Ms. Grossmann, who joined MortgageTree in 2000 as chief operating officer, has 23 years of mortgage industry experience, the company said. She is responsible for promoting the company to net branch clients, and for building strong relationships with the company's network of branch managers. Before joining MortgageTree, Ms. Grossmann was president of Golden Empire Mortgage. MortgageTree also announced the hiring of Robert Draizen to succeed Ms. Grossman as COO. The company can be found online at http://www.mortgagetreelending.com.

Cousins Properties Inc., an Atlanta-based real estate investment trust, has announced that Tom G. Charlesworth will retire from full-time employment and turn over his duties as chief financial officer to James A. Fleming in the summer.Cousins said Mr. Charlesworth, 55, will continue as executive vice president, chief investment officer, and senior adviser to the president on a part-time basis. He will assist the new CFO on an as-needed basis through the end of the year and then retire from full-time duties, the REIT said. Mr. Fleming, now senior vice president and general counsel, will be named executive vice president and CFO in August. The REIT can be found online at http://www.cousinsproperties.com.

Fannie Mae veteran Alan F. Greenwald has been named chief operating officer of A. F. Evans Co., a real estate developer and manager based in Oakland, Calif.Mr. Greenwald spent 10 years with Fannie Mae, most recently as director of its multifamily group. He has also worked in the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of the Secretary and its Office of the General Council. A. F. Evans develops and manages projects ranging from affordable housing and assisted-living facilities to market-rate apartments and condominiums, the company said.

Samuel J. Greenblatt has been promoted to executive vice president and director of originations at RAIT Investment Trust, Philadelphia.The real estate investment trust said Mr. Greenblatt has 30 years of experience in commercial financing and real estate services. He founded Pinnacle Capital Group LP, a commercial mortgage lender, before joining RAIT as a vice president in 2000. The REIT can be found online at http://www.raitinvestmenttrust.com.