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Vice Capital Markets, one of the nation's leading mortgage hedge advisory firms, named former managing director Troy D. Baars president. Baars joined the company in early 2008 during the onset of the financial crisis. During his tenure, he has been instrumental in helping the company's clients successfully navigate through market movements and changes in the landscape of mortgage salability.

Genworth U.S. Mortgage Insurance (USMI), a unit of Genworth Financial, Inc., announced it will offer 24 training classes in April to help mortgage lenders and servicers improve their efficiency and build their business.

The seasonal surge in home sales combined with another drop in listings to further drive up prices in March, Redfin observed in its latest Real-Time Price Tracker.

With the price of a new home barely above year-ago levels, builder confidence fell for the third straight month in April, dropping two points to 42.

In the budget he unveiled this week, President Obama, as he has in so many policy initiatives, attempted to reshape the political lexicon.

While rapid price gains have some analysts issuing warnings about a housing bubble in the making, newly released reports argue that a repeat of the 2008 crash is unlikely.

A recent industry survey detects rising optimism in the commercial real estate and single-family housing sectors over the next few years. The survey, conducted by the Urban Land Institute and Ernst & Young, finds a consensus among analysts that the real estate market will improve as transaction volumes rise and vacancies decline. "After a prolonged period of uncertainty, we're seeing a revival of investor confidence as the economy continues to recovery," said Dean Schwanke, SVP at the Urban Land Institute.

Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), announced the promotion of Fred C. Graham to deputy director of the Division of Federal Home Loan Bank Regulation. Graham has been with FHFA since its establishment in 2008 and has held several senior positions within the agency.

Churchill Mortgage, a Tennessee-based lender providing conventional and government-backed mortgages across 26 states, is expanding into Michigan with the opening of two branches.

David B. Lowman, a long-time senior leader in the mortgage finance industry, is joining Freddie Mac as EVP of the Single-Family Business effective May 20, the company announced.