Mortgage Underwriting Lead

Job Description

PSD Group is recruiting for a Mortgage Underwriting Lead to join an award-winning UK bank in Manchester. This is a newly created, high-visibility leadership role where you will act as the “face of underwriting” for the organization. You will manage a team of 12 Senior Underwriters, overseeing complex, high-value cases in the Specialist Residential and Buy-to-Let (BTL) sectors.

This position is ideal for a credit-minded leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment and possesses the commercial acumen to balance aggressive growth with responsible risk management.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership & Mentorship: Lead, develop, and manage a team of 12 Senior Specialist Underwriters, fostering a culture of technical excellence.

• Mandate Management: Own and exercise delegated underwriting authority for individual exposures up to £10 million.

• Complex Case Structuring: Act as the technical lead for structuring complex deals, including portfolio lending and corporate financial assessments.

• Risk Frameworks: Manage the mandate frameworks and ensure strict adherence to the bank’s lending policy and regulatory requirements.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Act as the primary escalation point for exceptions and appeals while maintaining strong relationships with external broker partners.

• Policy Development: Partner with the Credit Risk team to monitor bad debt drivers and refine credit policies to reflect market changes.

What You’ll Bring

Essential Experience:

• Property Credit Mastery: Extensive experience in specialist residential and BTL property credit underwriting.

• Operational Leadership: A proven track record of managing credit functions and leading high-performing teams.

• Policy Influence: Experience in shaping and implementing risk and credit policy frameworks.

• Technical Literacy: Ability to assess complex corporate financials and property-related credit risk.

• Regulatory Compliance: Deep understanding of the UK regulatory landscape; this is a Conduct Role under the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR).

Why This Role?

• Financial Reward: Competitive salary of £70,000 – £80,000 (negotiable) plus a performance-linked bonus and premium banking benefits.

• Career Impact: As a newly created role, you have the opportunity to define the underwriting culture and operational rhythm of the bank.

• High-Value Exposure: Handling mandates up to £10m provides significant professional challenge and exposure to sophisticated lending structures.

The Specialist Mortgage Market in 2026

As of 2026, the UK mortgage market has seen a distinct shift toward complexity:

• BTL Evolution: Buy-to-Let lending has moved increasingly toward Limited Company structures and HMOs (Houses in Multiple Occupation), requiring underwriters to have deeper knowledge of corporate tax and complex yield calculations.

• Credit Policy Agility: In a fluctuating interest rate environment, Underwriting Leads are now expected to utilize real-time data analytics to adjust affordability stress tests more dynamically than in previous years.