Fannie Mae named Omeed Malik to its board of directors, according to a post on X by Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Malik is the founder and CEO of Farvahar Partners, a boutique investment bank and broker-dealer. He is also the president of 1789 Capital, a Florida-based growth equity investment firm that includes Donald Trump Jr. among its partners. Malik was formerly a managing director and the global head of the hedge fund advisory business at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Ginnie Mae appointed Joseph M. Gormley as executive vice president and chief operating officer. Gormley will oversee Ginnie Mae’s mission to support stability in the nation’s housing markets, including leading strategic initiatives, operational functions and risk-management efforts. He previously held several senior roles at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and served as deputy assistant secretary for single-family housing at the Federal Housing Administration.
UWM Holdings Corp. named Rami Hasani as its new chief financial officer. Andrew Hubacker is moving from CFO into a senior adviser role as part of the transition. Hasani, who will oversee all financial aspects of the company, originally joined UWM in November 2020 as vice president of financial reporting and compliance.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) announced that Brendan Kelleher has been promoted to associate vice president of government housing finance, helping lead the MBA’s residential government housing policy and regulatory advocacy priorities. Kelleher joined MBA in 2022 as the associate director of residential loan administration policy before being promoted to director of that department. Prior to joining MBA, he held a series of ascending roles at Rocket Companies.
The MBA also announced that John Lammle has joined the association as associate vice president of commercial real estate finance, where he will help lead and execute MBA’s advocacy activities and initiatives supporting its commercial and multifamily members. Lammle previously held roles at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Prior to joining the FDIC, he served as economic development and public policy manager at Amazon.com and was previously staff assistant for then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
The MBA also presented its annual Burton C. Wood Legislative Service Award to Rebecca “Becky” Sandiland, senior loan adviser at Belay Bank Mortgage. A military veteran, Sandiland was previously a mortgage loan officer at First National Bank of Omaha for 25 years and served as president of the Nebraska Mortgage Association in 2020. She currently serves as the MBA Mortgage Action Alliance vice chair for 2025-26.
The Conference of State Bank Supervisors named David Bleicken as its new senior vice president of product and business strategy, where he will be responsible for advancing the strategic vision for a portfolio of regulatory technology products, including the State Examination System, a core component of the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System. Bleicken most recently served as operations chief in the division of supervision at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The National Housing Conference (NHC) announced the appointment of four new members to its Board of Governors: Keith Bickel of Bank of America; Amy Hovey of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority; Noerena Limón of the Casita Coalition; and Gisele Roget of Overbrook Square Group. Additionally, NHC reappointed four board members: Duane Duncan of Enact MI; Bryan Greene of the National Association of Realtors; Kathryn Monet of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans; and Michael Novogradac of Novogradac & Co.
The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals appointed industry veteran Dionne Cuello as the chair of the Corporate Board of Governors. Cuello, senior vice president of national diverse market segments at Citibank, brings extensive experience in creating innovative cultural marketing initiatives and fostering partnerships with Realtors and housing nonprofits.
Empower Mortgage, a lender dedicated to serving first-generation American homebuyers, has appointed Rogelio Goertzen as its chief growth officer. Founder of the Hispanic Organization of Mortgage Experts, Goertzen will drive the company’s strategic expansion, fostering greater financial inclusion for Hispanic, Latino and other underserved communities.
Rate announced the addition of Ted Edginton as producing branch manager in Birmingham, Mich. With over 22 years of experience as a senior loan officer, Edginton previously worked for U.S. Bank for more than two decades. He has been a member of the President’s Circle and Legends of Possible since 2008.
Rate also announced that Torrey Jacoby has joined the company as vice president of mortgage, based in Houston. A top 1% originator nationally, Jacoby brings over a decade of experience and closed more than $62 million in production in 2024.
Rate further announced that Brett Snortland has joined as senior vice president of market growth and development. Based in Houston, Snortland brings 30-plus years of sales and recruiting experience within the mortgage industry, and has funded more than $20 billion over his career.
Lastly, Rate announced the addition of Adrian Hall as manager of its branch in Knoxville, Tenn. The Knoxville native with over a decade of experience in the mortgage lending industry previously served as branch manager and senior mortgage loan officer at Movement Mortgage.
Citywide Home Mortgage, a Rate company, named mortgage origination veteran Ed Vaccaro as executive vice president of sales. Vaccaro brings 35-plus years of mortgage lending experience to Citywide, most recently serving as executive vice president with Home Mortgage Alliance Corp.
Action Title Research named technology veteran Christopher Leonard as CEO. Leonard was previously CEO of Velocity Solutions, where he led the development and commercialization of software solutions used by hundreds of financial institutions. Leonard also brings legal and industry expertise from his earlier career as an attorney in private practice, with experience in real estate and title searches.
Panorama Mortgage Group announced the appointment of Juan Cepeda as chief operating officer. With over 26 years of experience in the mortgage industry, Cepeda will oversee the company’s day-to-day operations, focusing on optimizing processes, improving efficiency and delivering innovative solutions.
CrossCountry Mortgage (CCM) expanded in the Cincinnati market by adding top loan originators Mario Rauch and Logan Stacey, who specialize in Federal Housing Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, purchase, refinance, first-time homebuyers and non-QM loans. CCM also recently added industry veterans Drew Stacey, Corey Grace, Geoff Bostick, Roland Weissman and Joe Koester.
Prudent AI announced the promotion of Paul Gigliotti to chief growth officer. Gigliotti will oversee revenue strategy, sales and marketing as part of the company’s commitment to accelerating AI adoption across the mortgage industry.
Real estate appraisal management company Class Valuation announced the appointments of Jim Bannister and Scott Shaw as senior sales executives. Bannister is a veteran mortgage lending sales executive who has worked at Cotality (formerly CoreLogic), First American Financial Corp., Black Knight Financial Services and Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE). Shaw has held senior sales roles at Intel, Cotality, First American, Black Knight Financial and ICE.
Usherpa, developer of the real estate and mortgage industry’s first customer relationship engagement platform, announced that Laila Stout, a marketing strategist with over 13 years of experience, has joined the company as senior marketing manager.
The American Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (AACFB) presented Steve Geller with the 2025 AACFB President’s Award, honoring his outstanding service to the association and the industry, noting that Geller has been a dedicated AACFB member for over 25 years.
