Stonegate Mortgage Builds Executive Team With 3 New Hires

Stonegate Mortgage Corp., a publicly traded mortgage company focused on originating, financing, and servicing U.S. residential mortgage loans, recently appointed Carrie Preston, current Chief Accounting Officer, as its CFO. Preston replaces Robert Eastep, who is leaving the company to pursue other opportunities.

"Carrie's twenty years as an industry veteran and specialties in accounting, auditing and financial reporting for publicly-traded companies make her a valuable addition to our executive team; I look forward to working closely with her as we continue to both maintain and grow Stonegate Mortgage's reputation as a leader in the mortgage industry," said Richard A. Kraemer, CEO of Stonegate Mortgage.

Preston is a CPA and joined Stonegate Mortgage in October 2014 as Chief Accounting Officer, where she was responsible for leading the accounting and Securities and Exchange Commission reporting teams, as well as managing technical accounting research and key aspects of compliance. Prior to this, she consulted for Stonegate Mortgage for Sarbanes-Oxley and financial reporting, and served as CFO for Union Mortgage Group, Inc., and SVP and Controller of Saxon Capital, Inc.

"Stonegate Mortgage is rooted in strong financial principles and compliance, key components in creating long-term shareholder value," Preston said. "Those factors make the company well-positioned for future financial success, and I am looking forward to assuming my role as CFO for the company."

 

In addition, Stonegate also appointed Michael Giampaolo's as EVP, Stonegate Direct. Giampaolo joins Stonegate Direct from IMPAC Mortgage Company, where he served as VP, Consumer Direct Lending, and was responsible for managing the direct-to-consumer retail call center business nationwide. Prior to that, he has held positions as SVP of Retail Sales at Mission Hills Mortgage, SVP of Retail & Wholesale Lending at Financial Freedom, SVP of Wholesale Lending at IndyMac Bank and EVP of Wholesale Lending at Washington Mutual Bank.

"Stonegate Direct's mission is to deliver a simple mortgage solution for those consumers looking to purchase or refinance a home and complete their mortgage application online," Giampaolo said. "Launched in October of 2014 as a division of Stonegate Mortgage, our focus is to streamline the mortgage process by providing direct-to-consumer offerings, including access to mortgage advisors, products and services 24/7 across the country."

"We are extremely pleased to have Michael join Stonegate Direct and lead our efforts to grow the direct-to-consumer business," said Jim Smith, Stonegate Mortgage President and COO. "His extensive mortgage industry background, reputation for leading high performing business units and strong execution skills make him a perfect fit to continue building our platform. I look forward to working closely with him and his future contributions to Stonegate Direct."

Stonegate Mortgage also named John Pantalone as SVP, Eastern Division Manager-TPO. In this role, he will lead and support the Eastern region's Third Party Origination sales teams, while creating and implementing growth strategies. Pantalone has been a member of the Stonegate Mortgage team since 2011. Previously, he worked as a Managing Partner at REOsure Real Estate Services, and as an Executive Vice President of Sales and Operations for NovaStar Mortgage. His long-time experience in management and TPO sales within the mortgage space qualify him for this role.

Steve Landes, Stonegate Mortgage EVP, National Director of Sales and President of NattyMac, Stonegate's wholly owned warehouse subsidiary, said, "Throughout his more than 5 years with Stonegate Mortgage, John has demonstrated high quality performance and leadership in the channel. His extensive knowledge of the mortgage industry along with his management experience and dedication to both other employees and to customers ensure that he will continue to uphold Stonegate's reputation as a leader in the mortgage space."

"It has been an exciting journey to watch Stonegate Mortgage grow in the TPO channel, establishing a platform with an unparalleled national presence," Pantalone said. "In my new role as Eastern Division Manager, I look forward to being a part of this continued growth and to consistently serving our customers with innovative, efficient and effective technologies."