TheMReport — News and strategies for the evolving mortgage marketplace.
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8 | M R EP O RT MCROWD LENDERS LEIF BOYD Twenty-year mortgage industry veteran Leif Boyd has joined AmeriSave Mortgage Corporation as the Chief Production Officer of Retail Sales. "We are excited to have someone of Leif's caliber join AmeriSave to lead our traditional distributed retail operations," AmeriSave President and COO Mike Berte said. "We know that with his expertise and leadership, our retail division will grow to be a significant force in the industry." AmeriSave currently operates in 49 states and D.C., and is one of the largest privately-held mortgage lend- ers in the country. In 2021, AmeriSave has funded $23 billion in volume, compared to January-June 2020 of $6.7 billion in volume. "The success that AmeriSave has experienced this year has been remarkable," Berte said. "Adaptability and innovation are second nature to us and without them, our team would not have reached these achieve- ments." AmeriSave has experienced a 238% increase in refi borrowers and a 906% increase in purchase borrowers financed. AmeriSave funded more customer purchase transitions in the second quarter of 2021 than all of 2020. Over his two decades in the mortgage space, Boyd has held a number of roles, including Managing Director of SunWest Mortgage, EVP of Production at Pinnacle Home Loans, VP of Production and Branch Development of the Rocky Mountain Division for Premier Mortgage Resources, Regional Manager for California and Nevada for Academy Mortgage Corporation, EVP of National Production for American Pacific Mortgage, and various roles with Granite Funding, First Franklin, Decision One, HSBC, and Household Finance. "I am extremely excited, and I'm very humbled to be a part of this incredible organization," Boyd said. KRISTINA LARESE American Advisors Group (AAG) has announced Kristina Larese as their new CCO, the latest phase in a series of leadership acquisi- tions as part of AAG's 2022 growth and expansion plan. "Kristina brings the executive experience that we need to elevate our compliance needs," said Rick Lieber, AAG Chief Risk Officer. "As we continue to thrive and expand, our corporate necessities also grow, and this move ensures that we keep our standards up to par. We're excited to bring Kristina on board and look forward to seeing her plans come to fruition." Prior to joining AAG, Kristina served as Head of Real Estate Servicing Business Risk and Controls for USAA. As a financial services executive, she has over 20 years' experience serving as in-house legal counsel to consumer financial services companies and banks, with a concentration on residential mort- gage lending and servicing opera- tions, secondary market transactions, corporate governance and customer service. Larese is a graduate of Michigan State University where she received both a Juris Doctor and a Bachelor of Arts in international relations and economics. JENNY RHODES PennyMac Financial Services has appointed Jenny Rhodes as its new Managing Director and Chief Human Resources Officer, leading PennyMac's mission to attract, grow, and retain a diverse workforce. Rhodes will be responsible for PennyMac's recruiting, compensation and benefits, leadership and talent development, performance manage- ment, career pathing, and succession planning, as well as shaping the firm's foundational HR disciplines. "PennyMac is pleased to wel- come Jenny to our leadership team. Her expertise will be essential to our organization as we continue to evolve and advance our comprehen- sive human resource strategy," said David Spector, Chairman and CEO at PennyMac. "Jenny's highly collabora- tive nature and diverse skill set will lead our company in its efforts of cultivating a culture that focuses on realizing the potential of its talent." Rhodes joins PennyMac from PNC Bank, where she was SVP of Human Resources. In her nearly 18 years at PNC, Rhodes assumed progressive roles across multiple divisions and was most recently responsible for leading HR for PNC's retail distribu- tion, including branch banking, call center, small business banking, mort- gage origination, investments, and operations, with an employee base of This month, some of the industry's largest companies saw significant changes to their corporate lineups. Who's moving on and who's moving up in the industry 23,000 team members. "I am honored to become a part of PennyMac's senior leadership team, where there will be opportunities to drive change and continue to pro- mote an environment where people can do great things and thrive," Rhodes said. She began her career with GE Capital in its HR Leadership Program, where she benefited from rotational assignments in and outside of the HR function and earned a Six Sigma Black Belt. MELISSA SMITH Fintech mortgage lender Wyndham Capital Mortgage has added Melissa Smith as its new SVP of Risk and Compliance. With an industry career spanning 30-plus years, Smith most recently spent time as the Compliance Executive, SVP–Fair & Responsible Banking; Risk Evaluation and Assurance for Key Bank, where she held responsibility for the over- sight of fair lending regulations, and compliance testing and monitoring across the organization. "As we face the future of shift- ing compliance regulations and an always-vital need to understand and abide by these rules, we knew it was critical to have someone in this role with Melissa's skill set and knowledge base," Wyndham Capital Mortgage Founder and CEO Jeff Douglas said. "We are always looking toward how to improve our organization as we continue to grow, and Melissa's joining is a great step in that direction." Smith will be based out of Wyndham Capital's office in Charlotte, North Carolina, and will continue to be a part of growing its footprint not only in Charlotte, but Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Phoenix, and Dallas. "When I look at Wyndham Capital, I see a company gaining momentum with its growth and technology," Smith said. "From leading the way in digital lending, to embarking on new paths in retail lending, there are countless opportunities ahead, and I am excited to be at the forefront of such an exciting time." Wyndham Capital is currently li- censed in 47 states, plus Washington, D.C., and in 2020, originated more than 13,000 loans valued at more than $5.4 billion.