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Rodney A. Montag has been named an executive managing director of the recently formed Cantor Real Estate LLC, according to New York-based Cantor Fitzgerald LP. Launched in May, the group is pursuing investment opportunities in select real estate sectors (including distressed real estate investment loans) with "a value-add focus on development and redevelopment assets," Cantor Fitzgerald said. Mr. Montag, who has over 20 years of real estate acquisition and development experience, will lead the venture along with executive managing director Andrew N. Stark, with whom Mr. Montag worked closely at WCI Communities for over 10 years.

J. Christopher Hoeffel has been named president of the Commercial Mortgage Securities Association for 2008-2009. Mr. Hoeffel, a managing director at JP Morgan Chase, succeeded Leonard Cotton, vice-chairman of Centerline Capital, at the conclusion of CMSA's June convention, the association reported. He has been on the CMSA board of governors for the past six years. Mr. Hoeffel joined JP Morgan Chase in June after the acquisition of Bear Stearns & Co., where he had been global co-head of the Commercial Mortgage Department. Mr. Hoeffel previously worked for Eastdil Realty Inc. in New York and Walker & Dunlop Inc., a commercial mortgage banking firm in Washington.

Kevin T. Kabat, president and chief executive officer of Fifth Third Bancorp, Cincinnati, has been given the additional title of chairman of the board. Mr. Kabat replaces George A. Schaefer Jr., who retired from the board June 17 as part of a succession plan that began with his retirement as CEO in April 2007. Mr. Schaefer joined Fifth Third Bank in 1971 and was named president and CEO in 1989, the company said. Fifth Third also announced the appointment of James P. Hackett as lead director. Fifth Third can be found on the Web at http://www.53.com.

Wendy Worcester has joined Thompson National Properties LLC, Irvine, Calif., as chief administrative officer. Ms. Worcester had been consulting for various start-up companies on forecasting, planning, accounting, and fundraising since 2007, Thompson said. She was previously chief financial officer at Rent.com from its start-up until its acquisition by eBay in 2005, and she held various positions with financial institutions such as Bank of America, Hawthorne Savings, and Ernst & Young. Thompson National, a provider of real estate investment opportunities and asset management services, can be found online at http://www.tnpre.com.

Robert F. Little has been named to head the Real Estate Finance Group of Babson Capital Management LLC, an investment management firm based in Springfield, Mass., and Charlotte, N.C., at the end of the year. Mr. Little, 42, will replace the retiring Kenneth Hargreaves, who has led the group since 1991 and has been with the firm's real estate business since 1972, Babson said. Mr. Little, who has been with the group since 1987, is currently responsible for the origination, structuring, and distribution of high-yield commercial mortgage products. His previous experience includes the development and oversight of the real estate group's capital markets area. Assuming Mr. Little's responsibilities will be Clayton "Chip" Andrews, who joined Babson in March and had been chief operating officer and partner at Cheslock, Bakker and Associates, a real estate merchant bank.

Philip M. Cedar has been named a partner in the financial services practice of the New York office of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis LLP. Mr. Cedar joins K&L Gates from Bear Stearns, where he was a senior managing director in the company's legal department and a group practice leader for the mortgage- and asset-backed securities division. Mr. Cedar has counseled a wide array of financial institutions and professionals on matters such as structuring and securities trading and financing, the law firm said.

Rajinder Singh has been named to the newly created role of chief credit risk officer at GMAC Financial Services, the New York-based parent company of Residential Capital LLC. Mr. Singh joins GMAC from Genpact, where he served as head of global analytics services. He also spent four years at GE, where he was chief risk officer for GE Money Americas, head of risk management and decision sciences, and an officer of GE Capital. Mr. Singh also previously led risk management at U.S. Bancorp.

The Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corp. has announced that 10 directors -- including three new directors who defeated nominees of the company's board -- were elected to one-year terms on Farmer Mac's board at the June 5 annual stockholders' meeting. The three new directors -- James R. Engebretsen, Clark Maxwell, and Brian J. O'Keane -- replace Timothy F. Kenny, Charles E. Kruse, and Ralph W. Cortese, respectively, who had been nominees of the board, Farmer Mac reported. Mr. Engebretsen is the MBA director and assistant dean of corporate relations and career services at the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University; Mr. Maxwell is a vice president and director of accounting policy and global accounting services at Chatham Financial Corp.; and Mr. O'Keane is the senior vice president and chief financial officer of AgriBank FCB, the largest of five banks in the national Farm Credit System. Farmer Mac, a government-sponsored enterprise, can be found on the Web at http://www.farmermac.com.

Donald J. Meyer has been named chief executive officer of American Mortgage Acceptance Co., New York, and elected to the board of trustees, effective July 1. Former AMAC CEO and trustee J. Larry Duggins will retire effective June 30 to attend divinity school at Southern Methodist University, the company said. Mr. Meyer will continue serving as an executive managing director and chief investment officer at Centerline Capital Group, AMAC's manager. AMAC can be found on the Web at http://www.americanmortgageco.com.

Robert M. La Forgia has been named a principal in The Atalon Group, a Las Vegas-based firm specializing in real estate operational turnaround and corporate recovery management. Mr. La Forgia was formerly executive vice president and chief financial officer of Hilton Hotels Corp. Mr. La Forgia's hotel career of over 25 years culminated with the $27 billion sale of Hilton Hotels to Blackstone and its affiliates late in 2007, the largest transaction in the hospitality industry to date, Atalon said. Mr. La Forgia was previously senior vice president and controller of Hilton Hotels. Atalon can be found online at http://www.theatalongroup.com.