Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers

Plan, direct, or coordinate the selling, buying, leasing, or governance activities of commercial, industrial, or residential real estate properties. Includes managers of homeowner and condominium associations, rented or leased housing units, buildings, or land (including rights-of-way).

From people doing the work

Day-to-day, you're a jack-of-all-trades: part diplomat, part accountant, part maintenance scheduler. One moment you're mediating a tenant dispute, the next you're reviewing budgets or coordinating repairs. It's a constant balancing act of people skills, financial acumen, and problem-solving, ensuring properties run smoothly and residents are content. Every day brings a new challenge, keeping things far from monotonous.

Drawn from Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), Community Associations Institute (CAI), National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM)

Attribution: Composite

Composite · Synthesised from Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), Community Associations Institute (CAI), National Association of Residential Property Managers (NARPM)

A day in the life of a Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers

People interaction
Extensive
Team vs solo
85% Team / 15% Solo
Client facing
Frequent
Impact visibility
Moderate
Travel
Moderate
Schedule flexibility
Flexible
Remote work
Hybrid
Typical work hours
50-60
Stress level
High

Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers salary, education and outlook at a glance

Median salary
$66,700
Entry-level
$43,000
Senior
$110,000
Growth by 2033
+3.6%
Demand
Stable
Freelance potential
Moderate
Salary growth potential
156%
Typical student debt
High

Skills you need as a Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers

Hard skills

  • Administration and Management
  • Complex Problem Solving
  • Data base user interface and query software

Soft skills

  • Coordination
  • Negotiation
  • Speaking

Technical complexity: Low

Tools of the trade

Core tools

  • AppFolio Property Manager (Software): Manages property accounting, leasing, and maintenance for residential and commercial properties.
  • Buildium (Software): Provides comprehensive property management solutions for residential and association properties.
  • Microsoft Excel (Software): Used for financial tracking, budgeting, and data analysis related to property performance.

Commonly used

  • QuickBooks (Software): Handles accounting tasks, including rent collection, expense tracking, and financial reporting.
  • Slack (Software): Facilitates internal team communication and coordination for property management tasks.
  • DocuSign (Software): Enables electronic signing of leases, contracts, and other property-related documents.

Specialist tools

  • Yardi Voyager (Software): An enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for large-scale real estate operations.

How to become a Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers

Minimum education
Bachelor's Degree
Licensing
No
Years to mid-career
8-12
Years to senior
15-20
Career switching
Hard

Where this career leads

How people arrive here

  • Real Estate Agent: Individuals often transition from selling properties to managing them, leveraging their market knowledge.
  • Leasing Agent: Experience in tenant acquisition and retention provides a strong foundation for property management.
  • Facilities Coordinator: Understanding building operations and maintenance is a direct pivot into property management responsibilities.

Where you can go from here

  • Real Estate Developer: Property managers with extensive experience can move into developing new properties or redeveloping existing ones.
  • Asset Manager: Managing a portfolio of properties can lead to roles focused on optimizing the financial performance of real estate assets.
  • Chief Operating Officer (COO): Senior property managers may advance to executive roles overseeing broader operational strategies for real estate firms.

Typical progression

  1. Facilities Managers
  2. Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers
  3. Chief Executives
  4. or General and Operations Managers

Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers job outlook and future demand

Automation probability
High
AI disruption risk
Moderate
Demand trend
Stable

Job satisfaction as a Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers

Overall satisfaction
7.2/10
Meaning
6.8/10
Work-life balance
5.5/10
Prestige
8.5/10
Social perception
Very High

Where practitioners gather

Professional organisations

Podcasts and media

Online communities

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