Controller - Director of Accounting (Commercial Real Estate)

Role Summary

A growing real estate investment and property management business is looking for a seasoned Controller / Director of Accounting & Finance to take end-to-end ownership of its accounting and finance function. The organization manages a sizable and intricate portfolio spanning residential and commercial assets, with more than 40 legal entities and around 100 properties.

This is a senior leadership opportunity for someone who can both set the financial direction and manage the day-to-day accounting engine. The role calls for a highly organized, process-oriented leader who can strengthen systems, improve reporting, and help the company scale into its next phase of growth.

The selected leader may also have the opportunity to grow into a long-term leadership or future partner track within the organization.

What the Role Will Cover

The Controller will oversee the full accounting and finance department, including reporting, budgeting, forecasting, KPI tracking, and portfolio performance analysis. The role requires comfort working at both a strategic and hands-on level: designing department-wide processes, solving problems directly, and stepping into detailed accounting work when needed.

A major part of the job will be modernizing the finance function by streamlining manual work, improving speed and accuracy, and introducing technology-enabled and AI-supported workflows. The position also involves creating structure in a complex, multi-entity environment, building SOPs and process maps, and delivering clear, timely reporting that helps ownership make better decisions.

Accounting and Financial Oversight

Manage accounting and reporting across the company’s property portfolio, entities, and related operations. This includes overseeing monthly, quarterly, and annual close cycles; ensuring accurate property-level, entity-level, and consolidated statements; and reviewing general ledger activity for correct treatment across all entities.

The position also covers accounts payable, accounts receivable, bank reconciliations, intercompany activity, owner distributions, lender reporting, and cash management. You will coordinate with external CPAs, tax professionals, auditors, lenders, investors, and internal owners while maintaining strong internal controls and reliable financial data.

Budgeting, Forecasting, and KPI Reporting

Lead the annual budgeting process for the company, its entities, and its property portfolio. Build and maintain budgets at the property, entity, and company levels, along with budget-versus-actual reviews and variance analysis for leadership.

You will also develop forecasts, cash flow projections, and capital planning materials. A key responsibility is creating recurring KPI reporting across accounting, finance, property management, leasing, maintenance, and other operational areas. Metrics may include occupancy, collections, delinquency, operating expenses, NOI, cash flow, maintenance costs, leasing velocity, debt service coverage, entity performance, and department productivity. The goal is to turn financial data into practical insights through dashboards, recurring reports, and executive summaries.

Department Leadership and Structure

Own the accounting and finance department as a whole and help build a high-performing, scalable team. This includes documenting workflows, designing SOPs, setting approval paths and deadlines, assigning responsibilities, and fixing weak points in current operations.

You will manage internal accounting staff, create accountability standards, and establish a dependable reporting cadence that can support future growth without relying on undocumented knowledge or informal processes.

AppFolio and Property Accounting

Run accounting processes within AppFolio and connected systems, with a focus on improving property accounting, tenant ledgers, owner reporting, bank reconciliations, payables, receivables, and property-level reporting. Consistent and accurate use of AppFolio across the portfolio is important, and prior experience implementing, optimizing, or cleaning up AppFolio is strongly preferred.

Process Improvement and AI Enablement

This role is expected to help move the finance function away from manual, person-dependent processes toward a more automated, AI-assisted operating model. You will identify recurring tasks that can be improved through automation, AI tools, offshore support, or better process design.

Part of the work will involve evaluating new technologies, building better workflows, and improving the quality, speed, and reliability of accounting, budgeting, variance analysis, KPI reporting, and executive visibility. The role will also help shape the company’s next-generation finance infrastructure.

Hands-On Execution

While this is a leadership role, the right person must also be willing to work in the details. That may include preparing or reviewing journal entries, reconciliations, schedules, and reports, as well as resolving accounting issues directly rather than only delegating them.

Required Qualifications

The ideal candidate brings at least 10 years of accounting experience and has managed accounting operations in a complex business environment. Strong knowledge of financial statements, general ledger accounting, reconciliations, cash management, budgeting, forecasting, and internal controls is essential.

Experience handling multiple entities, properties, cost centers, or business units is important, along with the ability to build and manage SOPs, workflows, checklists, and reporting systems. The role also requires strong leadership, communication, and organizational skills, plus comfort in a fast-paced entrepreneurial setting.

Preferred Background

Additional strengths include experience with AppFolio, real estate or property management accounting, CPA licensure, overseeing offshore or outsourced accounting support, and using automation or AI tools in accounting operations. Prior work building dashboards, budget-to-actual reports, financial models, KPI systems, or coordinating with owners, investors, lenders, and outside tax advisors is also highly valued.

Compensation

The base salary range for this role is $160,000 to $195,000, plus a discretionary bonus.

Additional Information

The hiring process may use AI-enabled tools to help review applications, screen resumes, assess responses, and flag possible inconsistencies or verification signals. These tools support the recruitment team but do not replace human judgment, and final hiring decisions are made by people. Applicants can request more information about how their data is processed by contacting the company.

Note: The opportunity is based in Los Angeles, CA and is an onsite position.