Mortgage Underwriter

Who are We

Progressive offers you the opportunity to be part of a leading home-grown organisation with a proud reputation for customer service excellence. With our personal and caring approach, we have been helping generations of local people to save and become homeowners. Supported by a strong high street presence and ambitious growth plans, our vision is to be the savings and mortgage provider of choice in Northern Ireland. As a nurturing employer, we believe in supporting staff to bring their whole selves to work in an inclusive environment where diverse needs are recognised and respected. If you are seeking the opportunity of blended home and office working in an exciting new role then we would love to hear from you. Upon successful completion of your training/probation period, we can offer you 2 days in the office with the remainder at your discretion.

About The Role

We are looking for an experienced Mortgage Underwriter to join our thriving Head Office Mortgage Underwriting Team. Reporting directly to our Mortgage Process Manager, the role aims to help our branches and brokers deliver a high-quality service that supports the achievement of our ambitious growth plans. With an eye for detail and strong people skills, you will bring your significant underwriting experience to the role, enabling you to quickly get up to speed with handling multiple cases to expected standards in accordance with our Lending and mortgage-related policies, TMF principles, regulatory requirements, and FCA responsible lending best practice. If you are passionate about serving our mortgage customers and ensuring customer experience excellence in a competitive landscape, then we want to hear from you. In return, you will have the opportunity to work flexibly within a hybrid arrangement and continue to grow your knowledge and competency in a collaborative team environment.

Responsibilities include:

• Underwrite and assess mortgage applications in line with lending policy, risk appetite, and regulatory requirements.
• Process applications efficiently, completing credit, affordability, and risk assessments with accuracy and attention to detail.
• Identify, challenge, and escalate complex or outside of policy cases, ensuring robust decision-making and clear audit trails.
• Liaise with internal teams, intermediaries, and valuers to progress cases and resolve queries effectively.
• Prepare, approve, and issue mortgage offers and conditions, ensuring the Society's interests are protected.
• Maintain accurate records of applications, actions, and customer communications on mortgage systems.
• Meet agreed KPIs and service standards while delivering a high level of customer and broker service.
• Ensure full compliance with FCA regulations, MCOB rules, internal policies, and Treating Customers Fairly principles.

What's on offer?

• Competitive salary
• Hybrid working model
• Annual KPI Bonus Scheme
• Excellent pension with up to 20% employer pension contribution
• Life Assurance Scheme
• Group Income Protection
• Health cash plan for money back on dental, optical costs etc.
• Generous holidays - 25 days plus up to 12 Bank Holidays
• Day off for your birthday
• Holiday purchase scheme
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Opportunity to gain great exposure in a supportive environment
• Excellent training and volunteering opportunities

As part of our recruitment process, successful applicants will be subject to our pre-employment checks. These include credit checks and criminal record checks (Access NI basic check through a responsible body).

Required Criteria

• Experience of working productively within a fast-paced customer-focused environment.
• Good Numeracy & Microsoft Office skills.
• Capable of delivering a professional, efficient service to branches and brokers.
• 1+ years' mortgage underwriting experience.

Desired Criteria

• CeMap qualified.

Skills Needed

• Answering Customer Questions
• Establishing Rapport With Clients
• Ability to Use Positive Language
• Ability to Identify and Anticipate needs

About The Company

Careers at Progressive: We know that looking for a career means so much more than just finding a job. At Progressive, we want to help you find your happy place to work. We firmly believe in encouraging our employees to achieve the right balance between their work and personal lives, delivering access to and promoting family-friendly policies. This not only increases employee satisfaction but also enables Progressive to meet the needs of our Members and supports the Society in being positioned as one of the most successful financial institutions in Northern Ireland.

Company Culture: To work for Progressive is to be part of something special. We strive to nurture and develop our employees in the evolving and fast-paced financial services industry. Outlined below are a list of the reasons why we feel Progressive is a great place to work:

• We aim to provide an inclusive and respectful working environment, where everyone recognises the importance and impact of teamwork.
• We celebrate staff diversity and work hard to ensure that our staff members feel valued as individuals and respected for their contribution to our success.
• We offer opportunities for our staff to work at the heart of our communities and make real differences to our Members' lives.
• We do not subscribe to a long-hours culture, instead valuing family life and supporting our staff to balance work and family commitments.

Company Benefits: We offer our staff competitive employment conditions and a range of benefits designed to achieve high levels of staff engagement and job satisfaction. We understand that by taking steps to positively enhance the well-being of our staff, we can help them to achieve their goals and boost their motivation to deliver the best possible outcomes for our members.

• Health insurance
• Vacation
• Paid time off
• Performance bonuses
• Paid sick days
• Retirement plan and/or pension
• Employee development programs