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The differences between lenders and mortgage underwriters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a lender and a mortgage underwriter. Additionally, a mortgage underwriter has an average salary of $55,721, which is higher than the $37,723 average annual salary of a lender.
The top three skills for a lender include customer service, loan applications and business development. The most important skills for a mortgage underwriter are customer service, work ethic, and FHA.
| Lender | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Yearly salary | $37,723 | $55,721 |
| Hourly rate | $18.14 | $26.79 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 6,465 | 9,260 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A Lender is a financial institution, an individual, or a private or public group that provides loans to a business or an individual. As a lender, you will evaluate a borrower's creditworthiness by assessing loan applications. You will be responsible for determining an applicant's financial eligibility and all applicable metrics and ratios. Other duties might include setting up plans for debt payment, counseling clients on restrictions and policies, and maintaining and updating account records. Also, you will need to update your knowledge on the different loan types and financial services.
A mortgage underwriter is responsible for reviewing mortgage loan applications and deciding on its approval or rejection by evaluating the submitted documents and the applicant's eligibility. Mortgage underwriters create assessment reports, research on the applicant's credit score, analyze potential loan risk, and request for additional documentation as needed. A mortgage underwriter must have extensive knowledge of the loan disciplines and processes, including its legislative procedures and regulations, to provide accurate decisions or discuss necessary findings to the loan officer for advice.
Lenders and mortgage underwriters have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lender | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Average salary | $37,723 | $55,721 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $55,000 | Between $38,000 And $80,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | South Dakota | New Mexico |
| Best paying company | Citi | CTBC Bank |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Professional |
There are a few differences between a lender and a mortgage underwriter in terms of educational background:
| Lender | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between lenders' and mortgage underwriters' demographics:
| Lender | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8% | Male, 39.3% Female, 60.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 6.3% White, 62.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 6.4% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |