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The differences between senior underwriters and loan officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior underwriter has an average salary of $69,375, which is higher than the $45,817 average annual salary of a loan officer.
The top three skills for a senior underwriter include customer service, portfolio and underwriting guidelines. The most important skills for a loan officer are customer service, origination, and loan origination.
| Senior Underwriter | Loan Officer | |
| Yearly salary | $69,375 | $45,817 |
| Hourly rate | $33.35 | $22.03 |
| Growth rate | -4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 6,726 | 63,663 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Years of experience | - | 6 |
A senior underwriter is responsible for evaluating the eligibility of an applicant for loan application processing. Senior underwriters verify the applicant's information, including their credit score and other valid documents, ensuring that the applicant fulfills the loan application's parameters. They check the applicant's portfolios and provide them the next necessary steps and the alternatives for loan types. A senior underwriter must have excellent knowledge of the loan processes and underwriting procedures to analyze applications and make accurate decisions.
Loan officers are responsible for assisting borrowers on the best type of loans to avail and guiding the clients throughout the application process. A loan officer must be highly knowledgeable about different lending products, payment plans, loan regulations, and essential files for fast loan approval. Loan officers also act as the first point of contact, conducting an initial screening of the customers, process loan contracts and appropriate documentation, update account records, and respond to customer's inquiries. A loan officer also has the right to reject loan applicants who do not meet loan qualifications.
Senior underwriters and loan officers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Underwriter | Loan Officer | |
| Average salary | $69,375 | $45,817 |
| Salary range | Between $44,000 And $108,000 | Between $30,000 And $69,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | Capital Group | Bangor Savings Bank |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Finance |
There are a few differences between a senior underwriter and a loan officer in terms of educational background:
| Senior Underwriter | Loan Officer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 71% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior underwriters' and loan officers' demographics:
| Senior Underwriter | Loan Officer | |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.0% Female, 58.0% | Male, 55.3% Female, 44.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 2.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 5.6% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 63.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 8% |