Backend Developer

About FirstClose

FirstClose is an innovative, dynamic and leading finance technology provider that designs, develops, and delivers best-in-class nationwide property & borrower data intelligence and settlement services to financial institutions in real estate and mortgage lending. Our innovative platform (a proprietary Sofware-as-a-Service application (SaaS)) has streamlined the loan process for over 400 lending institutions by directly integrating with existing loan origination systems to deliver instant property data, valuation, title, and settlement services, all in one place efficiently. Our mission is to empower lenders and their borrowers with cutting-edge solutions, enhance efficiency and drive success in the ever-evolving mortgage industry. We are continually growing and evolving. FirstClose operates on five core values: 1) Clients First - Focus on the market and needs of our clients. 2) Accountability - Be the change you seek, 3) Passion - Develop new ways to do things. 4) Respect - Build a culture of trust and transparency. 5) Engagement - Foster inclusion and collaboration.

Reports To: CTO

Job Description:

We are looking for a Backend Software Developer (offshore) to join our remote team. You will be responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining backend systems, ensuring performance, scalability, and security. If you have strong problem-solving skills, a deep understanding of backend technologies, and a passion for writing clean, modular code, we’d love to hear from you!

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain backend services and APIs using NestJS and TypeScript.
• Design and optimize REST APIs for performance and scalability.
• Work with non-relational databases (MongoDB) to store and manage data efficiently.
• Apply algorithm complexity and data structures knowledge to optimize performance.
• Use Git and branching strategies to collaborate effectively with the development team.
• Manage code and workflows using GitHub.
• Ensure backend software modularization to enhance maintainability and scalability.
• Debug and troubleshoot issues in backend systems to ensure smooth performance.
• Collaborate with frontend developers, DevOps, and other stakeholders to build robust applications.
• Write well-documented, maintainable code with a focus on best practices and performance.
• Work within an Agile development process, participating in Scrum ceremonies such as stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives.

Requirements

• Strong knowledge of data structures and algorithm complexity.
• Experience building and consuming REST APIs.
• Hands-on experience with MongoDB or other NoSQL databases.
• Proficiency in Git, including familiarity with branching strategies.
• Experience using GitHub for code management and collaboration.
• Understanding of software modularization and clean architecture principles.
• Experience with NestJS and TypeScript is highly preferred.
• Unit testing experience, particularly using Jest or similar testing frameworks.
• Error handling & logging: Experience with centralized logging and monitoring tools (e.g., Winston, Pino, Datadog, Sentry).
• Debugging skills: Ability to identify, analyze, and fix bugs efficiently using debugging tools and techniques.
• Containerization & Deployment: Understanding of Docker and containerized applications.
• Authentication & Security: Experience with JWT, OAuth, API keys, and session-based authentication, as well as security best practices (e.g., OWASP Top 10, CORS, rate limiting).
• Performance Optimization: Understanding of caching strategies (e.g., Redis, in-memory caching) and database query optimization.
• CI/CD Knowledge: Understanding of how Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipelines work and their role in software development workflows (hands-on experience is not required).

Nice to Have

• Familiarity with Kubernetes or other container orchestration tools.
• Experience using application performance monitoring (APM) tools like New Relic, Datadog, or Prometheusfor observability and performance monitoring.
• Experience working in Agile teams and using tools like Jira for project tracking.