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The Mortgage Bankers Association has announced the leadership of its 2008 Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Board of Governors, which focuses on commercial/multifamily real estate finance policy issues and initiatives.The officers of the 30-member COMBOG are: Steven K. Graves, chief operating officer of Principal Real Estate Investors, chair; Daryl J. Carter, chairman and CEO of Avanath Capital Partners, vice chair; and David A. Roberts, president and CEO of Collateral Real Estate Capital LLC, vice chair. The announcement was made at the 94th Annual Mortgage Bankers Association Convention & Expo in Boston.

Robert H. Griffith, senior vice president at Bank of America, Charlotte, N.C., has been elected chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association's Residential Board of Governors, and Timothy C. Dale, executive vice president of BB&T, Wilson, N.C., has been elected vice chairman.The MBA also elected nine new members of RESBOG, the 57-member governing body for the MBA's residential/single-family members, which is responsible for identifying legislative and regulatory policies on single-family residential lending and for making recommendations to the MBA's board of directors. The announcements were made at the association's 94th Annual Convention & Expo in Boston. The MBA can be found online at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.

Lidio V. Soriano has been named to the newly created position of executive vice president in charge of the retail banking and mortgage divisions of Oriental Financial Group Inc., San Juan, Puerto Rico.Mr. Soriano, 38, was previously head of Citibank's consumer mortgage operations in Puerto Rico. He also held several senior positions at Doral, including president of Doral Money, a New York-based subsidiary of Doral Bank specializing in commercial and construction mortgage. Oriental can be found on the Web at http://www.orientalfg.com.

Industry veteran Linda Simmons has been named to the newly created position of senior vice president of business development at Overture Technologies, a Bethesda, Md.-based developer of automated underwriting systems for the mortgage industry.Overture said the move is part of a plan to expand its market share in the mortgage segment. Ms. Simmons has over 20 years of executive experience in the mortgage banking industry. Before joining Overture, she was an associate partner for IBM Global Services' Business Consulting Services division. She was previously a partner with the Stratmor Group and a principal in Simmons Solutions. The company can be found online at http://www.overturetechnologies.com.

Lisa MacMillen has been named executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco.Ms. MacMillen has been the FHLBank's senior vice president and corporate secretary since 1998. She also served as general counsel from 1998 to 2005. The FHLBank can be found on the Web at http://www.fhlbsf.com.

Michael Pralle has joined J.E. Robert Cos., McLean, Va., as president and chief operating officer.Mr. Pralle will be responsible for driving the strategic growth of JER and managing the company's operations, as the company continues to expand its global investment platform, JER said. JER sources, underwrites, and manages real estate equity and debt investments in the United States, Europe, and some emerging markets. Mr. Pralle was most recently president and chief executive officer of GE Real Estate, managing a global portfolio of assets. His career at GE spanned 18 years. "Michael's network of relationships in the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Asia will be of invaluable importance as we continue to strategically grow our business," said Joseph E. Robert Jr., chairman and CEO of J.E. Robert.

Leading mortgage originator and industry trainer Greg Frost will now originate loans for First Houston Mortgage, Houston.He will maintain his position as president and chief executive of Albuquerque, N.M.-based Frost Mortgage, and his company will now originate loans for First Houston. He has a 9% market share in Albuquerque, and the company will retain its name for marketing purposes. Most recently, Frost Mortgage had been affiliated with the now-bankrupt First Magnus Mortgage, Tucson, Ariz. Mr. Frost is also vice president of new product development for LoanToolbox.com. "At this time of market instability, I wanted to go with a lender that has a great reputation," Mr. Frost said. "First Houston has the processes and technology that complements our own. For example, they have a truly paperless system, a wide variety of lending products, and a conversion support level that simplifies the way we do business." First Houston Mortgage can be found online at http://www.firsthouston.com.

David W. Berson, longtime chief economist at Fannie Mae, has been named chief economist and strategist of The PMI Group Inc., Walnut Creek, Calif.Mr. Berson's responsibilities will include domestic and global market research and planning, support of government relations, and public policy and strategic environmental planning, PMI said. He will also act as a PMI spokesman on topics related to global economic housing as well as mortgage market conditions and policy. At Fannie Mae, where he was vice president and chief economist since 1989, Mr. Berson advised the company on national and regional economic, housing, and mortgage policy and conditions. Mr. Berson previously held senior management positions at Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates and teaching positions at the University of Michigan, Claremont McKenna College, and Claremont Graduate School. PMI can be found online at http://www.pmigroup.com.

Frederic R. "Rick" McGill has been named president of Downey Financial Corp., Newport Beach, Calif., and its wholly owned thrift subsidiary, Downey Savings and Loan Association FA, effective Oct. 29.Mr. McGill will replace Daniel D. Rosenthal as president of the two entities, but Mr. Rosenthal will continue as chief executive officer of Downey and the thrift, Downey said. Mr. McGill has over 30 years of experience in the finance industry, most recently as a consultant to Banco Popular North America. He was previously president and chief executive officer of Quaker City Bancorp and Quaker City Bank until the holding company's sale to Banco Popular. Downey can be found on the Web at http://www.downeysavings.com.

Shawn Matthews and Scott Moore have been promoted to senior managing directors and co-heads of Cantor Fitzgerald's mortgage-backed securities sales and trading business.The company said the promotions were made in conjunction with a "renewed commitment" to the MBS market. Mr. Matthews is based in New York, and Mr. Moore is based in Chicago. "The dislocation of the mortgage-backed securities market is a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on Scott's and Shawn's superb capabilities," said Howard W. Lutnick, chairman and chief executive officer of Cantor Fitzgerald. The company can be found on the Web at http://www.cantor.com.