Government

Prudential Real Estate released Tuesday the results of its first-quarter Consumer Outlook Survey, revealing Americans' sentiment toward real estate is growing more and more favorable.

Chicago-based Guaranteed Rate announced the hiring of seasoned mortgage industry vet Tom Gamache as national director of retail production. Gamache brings more than two and a half decades of industry experience to Guaranteed Rate, recently serving in executive sales positions at MetLife Home Loans and Bank of America, where he led his sales team to exceed quarterly and annual production goals.

Fiserv, Inc., announced that its Common Origination Platform and LoanServ solutions have been integrated to provide real-time, full-circle loan boarding processes for all mortgage loans.

Class Appraisal, Inc. appointed a former mortgage banking executive to manage sales in the middle market. Tim Perkins was selected to lead the company as a consultant and business developer. Over the years, Perkins has held key positions with large mortgage banking companies such as Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase.

In Oklahoma, AmeriBid LLC announced the promotion of chief marketing officer John Pellow to VP. Pellow joined the company in 2009, serving before then as director of marketing for a real estate auction and brokerage services firm, where he was responsible for the marketing and sales support of several divisions.

Arizona's Gold Canyon Bank became the fifth FDIC-insured bank to fail in 2013, the agency announced. The Arizona Department of Financial Institutions closed the bank Friday, appointing FDIC as receiver. To protect depositors, Gold Canyon Bank's estimated $44.2 million in deposits has been assumed by First Scottsdale Bank, National Association, which has also agreed to purchase essentially all of the failed bank's $45.2 million in total assets.

GMH Mortgage Services LLC, based in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, continues to expand its reach with the addition of Ed Moloney as a new loan officer in its Boston, Massachusetts, branch.

Just as there is no Democratic or Republican way to collect garbage okay, there might be depending on how much government you want there should be no Democratic or Republican economic data. The numbers are what they are, not what your political lens tells you they are. That said, when data such as the March report are released--weak job growth, yet a drop in the unemployment rate--conspiracy theorists emerge from the woodwork.

While inventory shortage has created myriad problems for buyers, they're apparently undeterred from their home searches, according to data from Redfin. The brokerage's Real-Time Demand Pulse for April (which examines March data) shows strong monthly gains in the number of Redfin customers touring homes and in the number of signed offers being made, indicating potential pickups in April and May sales. Redfin analyst Tim Ellis noted the struggle to find new listings "only seems to be strengthening the resolve of today's buyers."

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau(CFPB) announced enforcement actions against four mortgage insurers who allegedly gave kickbacks to lenders in exchange for business. CFPB proposed consent orders against Genworth U.S. Mortgage Insurance Corporation (USMI), Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC), Radian Guaranty Inc., and United Guaranty Corporation (UGC) for their alleged roles in kickback arrangements. The proposed orders require the companies to pay $15.4 million in penalties to the bureau.