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The differences between underwriters and mortgage underwriters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an underwriter has an average salary of $61,751, which is higher than the $55,721 average annual salary of a mortgage underwriter.
The top three skills for an underwriter include customer service, investor guidelines and mortgage loans. The most important skills for a mortgage underwriter are customer service, work ethic, and FHA.
| Underwriter | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Yearly salary | $61,751 | $55,721 |
| Hourly rate | $29.69 | $26.79 |
| Growth rate | -4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 8,510 | 9,260 |
| Job satisfaction | 3 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Years of experience | - | 6 |
An underwriter's duties depend on the line of work or industry involved, such as mortgage companies, insurance, or lending firms. However, an Underwriter's responsibility will mainly revolve around using their extensive expertise on how a company will achieve financial gains, and assessing the possible financial risks of a client by reviewing various aspects to determine their capacity to uphold monetary obligations. Most of the time, the Underwriter's tasks will also involve evaluating a client's credit history, health, assets, overall financial history.
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.
Underwriters and mortgage underwriters have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Underwriter | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Average salary | $61,751 | $55,721 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $96,000 | Between $38,000 And $80,000 |
| Highest paying City | Boston, MA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | New Mexico |
| Best paying company | CTBC Bank | |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Professional |
There are a few differences between an underwriter and a mortgage underwriter in terms of educational background:
| Underwriter | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between underwriters' and mortgage underwriters' demographics:
| Underwriter | Mortgage Underwriter | |
| Average age | 44 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% | Male, 39.3% Female, 60.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 2.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 5.6% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | 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 | 9% | 8% |