Senior Home Lending Underwriter

About Upstart

At Upstart, we’re united by a mission that matters: to radically reduce the cost and complexity of borrowing for all Americans. Every day, we bring creativity, experimentation, and advanced AI to reshape access to credit, helping millions move forward financially with clarity and confidence.

As the leading AI lending marketplace, we partner with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit through technology that’s both radically intelligent and deeply human. Our platform runs over one million predictions per borrower using more than 1,800 signals, powering smarter, fairer decisions for millions of customers. But the numbers only hint at the impact. Every idea, every voice, and every contribution moves us closer to a world where credit never stands between people and their financial progress.

We’re proudly digital-first, giving most Upstarters the flexibility to do their best work from wherever they thrive, alongside teammates across 80+ cities in the US and Canada. Digital-first doesn’t mean distant. We’re intentional about in-person connection through team onsites, planning sessions, and moments that spark creativity and trust. And whether you choose to work primarily from home or collaborate in-person from one of our offices in Columbus, Austin, the Bay Area, or New York City (opening Summer 2026), you’ll have the support to work in the way that works best for you.

If you’re energized by tackling meaningful problems, excited to innovate with purpose, and motivated by work that truly matters, we’d love to hear from you.

The Team: 

The HELOC Underwriting team is responsible for evaluating loan applications and making sound, policy-aligned credit decisions. This team ensures consistent application of underwriting guidelines across approvals and declines, validates borrower income and assets, and identifies potential fraud risks. The team partners with Processing, Closing, and Quality to ensure accurate and efficient loan decisioning and funding.

As a Senior Home Lending Underwriter, you’ll partner closely with our Licensed Loan Advisors to ensure loan decisions are accurate and timely. It is your responsibility to ensure that we are originating quality, sellable loans that adhere to our underwriting policy and procedures. You will also need a keen eye for process improvements, and a track record of exceptional recommendations to enable Upstart to originate high quality loans.

How you’ll make an impact

• Approval & decline accuracy: Ensure all approval and decline decisions are well-supported, clearly documented, and consistent with credit policy and regulatory expectations.
• Income & asset validation: Accurately calculate and validate borrower income (W-2, self-employed, variable income, rental, etc.) and assess assets to determine repayment ability.
• Fraud risk identification: Review applications for potential fraud indicators (income misrepresentation, occupancy concerns, document inconsistencies, identity risk) and take appropriate action in alignment with fraud protocols.
• Documentation & compliance: Maintain complete, audit-ready loan files with clear rationale, supporting documentation, and decision notes.
• Operational consistency: Apply underwriting guidelines consistently and contribute to maintaining quality and reducing defects across the underwriting process.

Minimum Qualifications 

• 5+ years of residential mortgage underwriting experience with independent decisioning authority
• Demonstrated experience making both approval and decline decisions
• Strong experience calculating income across multiple borrower profiles (W-2, self-employed, variable income, rental income, etc.)
• Experience reviewing loan files for fraud risk and escalating concerns appropriately
• Experience working within an LOS and reviewing full loan documentation packages
• Strong documentation skills supporting credit decisions for QA/audit review

 

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with HELOC-specific underwriting guidelines and second lien products
• Familiarity with fraud detection tools, red flag identification, and investigation workflows
• Experience in high-volume underwriting environments with SLA expectations
• Proficiency with Excel/Sheets for income calculation and loan analysis
• Familiarity with compliance and regulatory requirements related to mortgage underwriting

Position location This role is available in the following locations: Columbus, OH

Time zone requirements The team operates on the East coast time zones.