Only slightly more than a year after joining the Mortgage Bankers Association as its President and CEO, David Stevens will leave to become President of SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.  Stevens will join SunTrust effective July 16 and will be responsible for day-to-day business operations of the company.  His new position will report to the bank's CEO Jerome Lienhard.

In announcing the departure of Stevens, MBA said it has already begun a search for his replacement.  In the interim, Marcia M. Davies, MBA's Chief of Staff and Senior Vice President will assume Stevens' responsibilities.

Stevens joined MBA in May 2011 after serving as Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and Commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).  At that time, confronting potential charges of conflicts of interest, Stevens announced he would recuse himself from working on any MBA issues involving that agency.

SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SunTrust Banks which has total assets of $178.2 billion and total deposits of $130.0 billion.  The bank is based in Atlanta but Stevens will be headquartered in Washington, DC. 

"Dave has been an exceptional leader for MBA," said MBA Chairman Michael Young.  "Although we are sorry to see him leave so soon, he leaves us well-positioned for the future.  Dave delivered on his pledge to enhance MBA's position as the industry's leading voice in advocacy, policy, education and research and has developed a dynamic infrastructure for addressing member needs.  

"His insights and leadership have demonstrated the importance of having one large platform where the entire industry can come together in an effort to provide a common voice on the critical issues of the day." Young continued.  "The MBA, its leadership and members remain steadfast in our focus to bring solutions that will benefit the entire housing market, borrowers and lenders alike."