Business briefs

Bank names 4 to regional board

DAYTONA BEACH -- SunTrust Bank has added four Volusia County business leaders to its regional East Central Florida board of directors.

They are Mark A. Ascik, president of Stylemark Inc., formerly known as Capo, in Ormond Beach; traffic engineer Maryam Hosseini Ghyabi, president of Ghyabi & Associates; Robert W. Lloyd, assistant general counsel, Brown & Brown Inc.; and William H. McMunn, president, Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co.

Retiring from the board after six years of service were Daytona Beach automobile dealer William S. Lloyd and fernery operator Richard E. Hagstrom of Pierson.

Bank nears opening of 1st area office

ORMOND BEACH -- Florida Capital Bank, getting ready to open its first Volusia County office at the Wilmette Professional Center, has hired a Bank of America branch manager to oversee the office.

Terry Hall, formerly manager of Bank of America's office in DeBary, will manage an office that will open in mid-November at 310 Wilmette Ave, Suites 3-4. She has 25 years of banking experience and a finance degree from Middle Tennessee State.

She will report to Cynthia Ramirez, former Volusia-Flagler president at Bank of America who now holds a similar post at Florida Capital.

Meeting focuses on Internet marketing

DAYTONA BEACH -- Promoting businesses on the Internet will be the focus of an informational meeting from 8 to 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Workforce Development Board Center for Business Excellence, 329 Bill France Blvd. The focus will be on helping companies interested in marketing on-line and learning about available Web site tools and resources. For reservations call (386) 323-7008.

-- Staff Report

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.