Candy Pagan
CMG Home Loans
MIAMI,FL
Summary
Senior Mortgage Underwriter with 16 years of experience in underwriting and lending operations, specializing in manual underwriting, foreign national loans, and complex self-employed income assessments. Conducts FHA and conventional appraisal reviews with residential signing authority up to $2M, maintaining over 98% QA accuracy. Bilingual in English and Spanish, with strong communication skills and a focus on compliance and team collaboration.
1
Language
1
Certification
18
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Mortgage Underwriter | FHA DE & Conventional
10 Months- Underwrote FHA and conventional loans using Byte LOS, evaluating credit, income, assets, collateral, and layered risk for agency and investor compliance.
- Reviewed Desktop Underwriter (DU) and Loan Product Advisor (LPA) findings, resolved exceptions, and issued underwriting conditions.
- Assessed FHA and conventional property appraisals for collateral risk, property condition, valuation support, and compliance with agency and investor requirements.
- Evaluated Desktop Underwriter (DU) and Loan Product Advisor (LPA) findings, resolved exceptions, and issued underwriting conditions to ensure adherence to guidelines.
- Coordinated with lending teams to expedite approvals and uphold file quality, ensuring timely closings.
Senior Mortgage Underwriter (FHA DE)
4 Years- Underwrote 6–8 complex loans daily under FHA DE and conventional delegated authority, maintaining salability and disciplined risk analysis.
- Provided senior escalation support for self-employed income, multiple financed properties, investor overlays, and guideline exceptions.
- Aligned credit decisions with agency guidelines and investor requirements, mitigating repurchase exposure and ensuring secondary market deliverability.
- Documented underwriting rationales and conditions, supporting timely closings and maintaining audit readiness.
Mortgage Senior Underwriter III
1 Year- Authorized signing for first liens up to $2M and second liens up to $750K, ensuring adherence to agency and investor guidelines.
- Assessed complex income, asset, and collateral structures, maintaining compliance with SAFE Act and regulatory standards.
- Streamlined underwriting rationales and documentation requirements, enhancing file quality and expediting closing processes.
Operations Manager, Commercial & Residential Lending
6 Years- Led and scaled a nationwide underwriting and shared services team of 45+ with delegated authority up to $1M for first liens and $750K for second liens.
- Directed credit decisions for conventional 1–4 family mortgages and HELOCs, achieving balance between production growth and risk management.
- Implemented end-to-end standard operating procedures and operational controls from underwriting through accounting, enhancing cycle times and ensuring audit readiness.
- Evaluated Non-QM and DSCR programs, assessing borrower liquidity, rental income stability, and layered risk to inform lending decisions.
Underwriter III
1 Year- Underwrote high-volume retail mortgage applications under agency and government guidelines, ensuring thorough assessment of credit, income, assets, and collateral to minimize risk.
- Maintained delegated signing authority up to $1M and ensured HMDA accuracy across FNMA, FHLMC, and non-agency products.
- Issued clear conditions to expedite file resolution and uphold quality standards, consistently meeting turnaround requirements.
Mortgage Underwriter III
4 Years- Underwrote high-balance residential mortgages with delegated authority up to $2M for first liens, ensuring compliance with underwriting guidelines and risk assessment standards.
- Collaborated with risk and compliance teams on complex borrower and collateral scenarios to mitigate repurchase exposure and document credit decisions that withstand audits.
- Evaluated mortgage applications against investor, agency, and internal underwriting guidelines.
- Analyzed income, assets, liabilities, and credit history to determine borrower qualification.
- Reviewed appraisal, title, and property documentation for collateral and compliance issues.
Education
Associate of Science - Business Management
Skills
FHA DE Underwriting
Manual Underwriting Without AUS
Appraisal analysis
Non-QM
DSCR
Foreign National Loans
Jumbo
High-Balance
High balance loans
K-1
Layered Risk
Exception Review
Clear to close
Repurchase Risk
Quality control remediation
Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac
Regulatory compliance
HPML
Pipeline Management
Byte LOS
Encompass
LendingQB
Desktop Underwriter (DU)
Loan Product Advisor (LPA)
Automated Valuation Models (AVM)
LexisNexis
CLEAR
Thomson Reuters
Salesforce
Plaid
KYC/KYB Verification
Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
Funding Management Systems (FMS)
Power BI
Tableau
Advanced Microsoft Excel
Reporting & Modeling
Data Integration & Merge Solutions
Residential loans
Debt-to-income ratios
LTV calculations
Jumbo and super jumbo loans
Fraud detection
Foreclosure prevention strategies
Employment verification techniques
Policy adherence awareness
Appraisal review expertise
Certification
- FHA Direct Endorsement (DE)
- Mortgage Loan Originator (MLO), NMLS #1841391
Languages
English and Spanish: fluent speaking, reading, and writing.
Personal Information
Title: Senior Mortgage Underwriter | FHA DE | Conventional | Non-QM | DSCR
Timeline
Senior Mortgage Underwriter | FHA DE & Conventional
CMG Home Loans
01.2026 - 11.2026
Senior Mortgage Underwriter (FHA DE)
DHI Mortgage
01.2021 - 01.2025
Mortgage Senior Underwriter III
JPMorgan Chase
01.2020 - 01.2021
Operations Manager, Commercial & Residential Lending
Uplyft Capital
01.2014 - 01.2020
Underwriter III
Waterstone Mortgage
01.2013 - 01.2014
Mortgage Underwriter III
JPMorgan Chase
01.2009 - 01.2013
Milwaukee Area Technical College
Associate of Science from Business Management