Bridging & Development Underwriting Lead

Unico Recruitment London; Borehamwood; On-site; GBP 72,000 - 88,000; Full time

Job summary

Unico Recruitment London is seeking an Underwriting Team Leader for bridging and development lending in Borehamwood. You will lead a team handling bridging, refurbishment and development finance cases to drive quality and efficiency in a fast-growing lender.

You will act as a senior decision-maker on complex applications, collaborating with credit, operations and senior management to streamline processes and maintain exceptional service levels as the business scales.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in property-based lending—bridging, development or specialist real-estate finance.
• Strong understanding of risk assessment, due diligence, legal processes and property-backed security.
• Prior experience coaching or managing underwriters (or ready to take a step up).
• A commercial mindset with the ability to balance speed and quality.
• Please note: candidates from an insurance underwriting background will not be suitable for this role.

Responsibilities

• Manage and mentor a team of underwriters handling bridging, refurbishment and development finance cases.
• Act as a senior decision-maker on complex or higher-value applications.
• Ensure underwriting standards, SLAs, and risk controls remain robust while supporting a fast-paced environment.
• Work closely with credit, operations, BDMs and senior management to streamline processes and maintain exceptional service levels.
• Support continuous improvement across the underwriting function as the business scales.

Skills

Underwriting Leadership

Property Finance

Risk Assessment

Due Diligence

Mentoring

Process Improvement

Job description

Unico Recruitment London is seeking an Underwriting Team Leader for bridging and development lending in Borehamwood. You will lead a team handling bridging, refurbishment and development finance cases to drive quality and efficiency in a fast-growing lender.

You will act as a senior decision-maker on complex applications, collaborating with credit, operations and senior management to streamline processes and maintain exceptional service levels as the business scales.