Underwriting Manager

At Kind Lending, our family of diverse and talented Kind Ambassadors are the driving force behind our new approach to the mortgage experience. They're the heart and soul of the organization and our "People Before Profits" mentality shines through in every department. Kind Lending is growing and is looking for top mortgage professionals who value opportunity, lasting business partnerships, and who live out our KIND mindset.

Kind Lending is determined to provide the best service in the industry while also providing home buyers with a great selection of products to enhance their buying experience. Backed by our trusted leadership team, Kind Lending's friendly and professional model puts the “fun” in funding.

The Underwriting Manager holds a senior leadership role within the lending process, overseeing Underwriting Team Leads and their teams of mortgage underwriters to ensure efficient, accurate, and compliant evaluation of residential mortgage loan applications. This role is responsible for leading and developing the underwriting function while maintaining a strong focus on risk management, regulatory compliance, and consistent adherence to company lending guidelines and applicable agency and investor requirements.

The Underwriting Manager brings a strategic mindset, deep underwriting expertise, and strong communication skills to drive informed decision-making and support the overall success of the organization's lending operations.

• Manage Underwriting Team Leads (direct reports) and provide indirect oversight of mortgage underwriter teams, delivering guidance, training, and support to ensure consistent and high‑quality underwriting decisions.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex or high‑risk underwriting cases, providing expert guidance to Team Leads and underwriters in making well‑informed lending decisions.
• Lead with a positive attitude, conduct regular audits of underwriting decisions and condition language, and maintain open communication with internal and external stakeholders.
• Oversee the review of mortgage applications and underwriting decisions to ensure accuracy, guideline adherence, and compliance with all applicable regulatory and investor requirements.
• Assess creditworthiness on complex loan files by reviewing financial documentation, analyzing credit reports, and evaluating critical risk indicators to support informed lending decisions.
• Collaborate with senior management to establish and refine underwriting guidelines, reflecting industry best practices, regulatory requirements, and the organization’s risk tolerance.
• Identify training needs within the underwriting team and coordinate professional development opportunities with the training team to ensure ongoing skill enhancement and industry knowledge.
• Maintain a deep understanding of mortgage regulations and guidelines, ensuring that underwriting practices align with legal requirements and industry standards.
• Continuously improve underwriting processes by leveraging technology and automation to streamline workflows and enhance efficiency without compromising accuracy or compliance.
• Review regular reports on underwriting performance, identifying trends, areas for improvement, and potential risk exposure; deliver daily production reports and conduct proactive team check‑ins.
• Collaborate closely with Account Executives, Brokers, Account Managers, and other internal teams to address inquiries and provide guidance on complex underwriting scenarios.
• Proactively manage team pipeline alongside operations leadership, providing file‑level support as needed to maintain throughput and service levels.
• Foster strong partner and broker relationships by consistently providing a high level of service and representing Kind Lending’s values and culture.

• 7+ years of experience in mortgage underwriting with progressively increasing responsibility, including prior supervisory or management experience; experience overseeing Underwriting Team Leads preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in finance, business, economics, or a related field, or equivalent work experience.
• Solid knowledge of FNMA, FHLMC, FHA, VA, and USDA…