Estate Manager

The Estate Manager is the operational owner of a private family's residences, anchored at the primary home in Washington, DC, with three additional properties in seasonal rotation. The principals lead full professional lives in philanthropy and private investment, and they run their homes the way they run their organizations: as a well-managed business with a small, long-tenured household team, documented systems, and a genuine standard for follow-through. The complexity of this seat is not square footage; it is the coordination, planning, and judgment required across a distributed portfolio and a busy family life, and the seat carries real authority over how that work gets done. Today, the strategic planning for the homes sits with the principals. They anticipate the seasons, question the invoices, and do the strategic thinking behind most projects. The new Estate Manager will take ownership of this work and should expect to: develop a written operating plan for each property, manage vendors and hold them accountable on quality, plan for and implement projects from conception through the completed punch list, track and review household bills, execute events from invitation through follow-up, and, as trust builds, manage and own the family calendar. The role also includes building from the ground up a recently renovated property that has little support structure. The household is casual but professional, human centered, and self reliant, and it suits a particular kind of operator. The principals are direct, decisive, and genuinely appreciative of strong work. They extend real autonomy and verify that it is earned, and they ask questions out of curiosity, with the expectation that the reasoning behind any decision can be clearly explained. For the right person, one who anticipates rather than reacts and considers no task beneath the role, this is a seat with substantial ownership and room to grow. EXPECTATIONS Demonstrated experience as an estate manager, house manager, chief of staff, or operations lead supporting a private family, a principal, or a comparably complex multi-stakeholder environment. Orientation matters more than pedigree here; strong project management and operations backgrounds outside private service are welcome. Proactive operations management: building written operating plans, seasonal and quarterly calendars, inventory and purchasing systems, and checklists that are reviewed and improved rather than left to run on autopilot. Strong written communication: bottom-line-first updates, clear project plans, and a documented history of decisions so that knowledge survives transitions and never lives in one person’s head. Vendor sourcing and management, including negotiating, holding vendors accountable, and reviewing invoices closely enough to catch the line item that moved in the wrong direction. Multi-property coordination, including standing up support structures (local handymen, housekeeping, deliveries) at a property that does not yet have them. Oversight of construction, renovation, and redecoration projects from planning through punch list. Household financial administration: maintaining the bill tracking system, reviewing charges, and coordinating payment workflow. Event planning end to end, from the invitation through the follow-up, for both professional hosting and social gatherings. Management of a small household team: standing weekly and individual staff meetings, daily awareness of what each person is working on, and constructive feedback. Annual evaluations are expected. Comfort with app-based household technology (audio, security cameras, generator, leak detection) and the maintenance schedules behind it. Proficiency in Excel and Word, and comfort with tools such as Paperless Post. WHO YOU ARE Anticipatory by instinct. You think in seasons: the filters are on site before fall, the decorations are inventoried as they are put away, and next year’s list is written before anyone asks for it. A grounding presence. The principals carry a great deal at once; you show up steady and calm, take the handoff, and let them put it down. Confident and humble in the right proportion. Solutions-oriented by reflex. You never bring a problem alone; you bring the problem, the ways you would attack it, and the one you recommend. Able to move between the strategic view and the granular detail without losing either. Naturally curious and able to absorb and retain new information. Feedback goes in, gets absorbed, and comes back as changed behavior. You can work under ambiguous conditions and make the best decision possible for the situation. Direct and comfortable with directness. You say what you mean, you welcome curiosity about your choices, and you can walk anyone through the route of logic you took to a conclusion. Decisive with imperfect information. You move, you iterate, and you do not wait for certainty that is never coming. Genuinely hands on. You will design the system in the morning and wrap the present or make the pharmacy run in the afternoon, and neither feels beneath you. An owner. When something is yours, you protect it, you run it, and you answer for it. A builder of independence, not dependency. Your systems are ones the family can see, understand, and operate without you; you make yourself replaceable on purpose. A capable writer, because writing is thinking made visible, and this family reads. Fast enough to keep pace with principals who juggle a great deal and rarely drop anything. Absolutely discreet, in person and online, at all times. PREFERRED Based in the DC region with an established local vendor network. Candidates relocating should come with a proven, specific approach to building one. Familiarity with estate management platforms such as Nines, and the ability to evaluate, recommend, and implement one. Experience coordinating support for extended family members across households. Spanish fluency. RESPONSIBILITIES Property Oversight and Standards: Own the daily wellness of the primary residence inside and out. This is not a desk seat: dedicated time each day walking the property, checking on active projects, and knowing what the housekeeper and handyman are working on and what feedback they need. Maintain the weekly, quarterly, and annual task rhythms already documented, and build a written operating plan for each property in rotation. Multi-Property Coordination: Manage the seasonal rhythm of the summer residence and gradually assume its local vendor coordination from a family member. Serve as light-touch liaison for international properties whose day-to-day oversight is handled locally. As a first major project, build the support structure for a recently renovated apartment from scratch: an on-call handyman, delivery acceptance, and possibly housekeeping. Vendor and Project Management: Source, contract, and manage vendors across all properties, and hold them accountable on quality and price. Oversee construction, renovation, and redecoration projects. Review every bill closely enough to notice when a charge moves the wrong way, and pursue the answer. Financial Administration: Run the household bill tracking system. All bills arrive in a single dedicated inbox; this seat maintains the spreadsheet of what is due, reviews charges, and plays a central role as bill pay transitions back in house. Events: Plan and execute the family’s quarterly professional hosting and periodic social gatherings, owning everything from the invitation design through the project plan to the follow-up correspondence. Family Support: Provide genuinely hands-on daily support: errands, gift wrapping, pharmacy runs, travel logistics, and practical help with the children’s transitions, activities, and launches into the next stage of life. Over time, this seat grows into ownership of the family calendar. Systems and Documentation: Build and iterate the systems that make the household run without heroics: inventory and grocery workflows that stay current, maintenance automations, and a documented operating picture of every home. Everything built must remain visible and usable by the principals; the family should never be locked out of the knowledge of its own homes. Reporting Cadence: A standing weekly in-person meeting with the principals, brief morning check-ins as needed, and communication by email and text. Written updates lead with the bottom line, with the reasoning available underneath, and decisions carry a documented history of how they were reached. Scope Boundary: This seat coordinates the crafts: cooking sits with the chef, cleaning with the housekeeper, repairs with the handyman, bookkeeping with the office, and legal and estate matters with counsel. Philanthropy operations are separate. What is not delegated away is the practical daily support named above; the hands-on work is a genuine part of this role, not a lapse in it. Confidentiality and Discretion: Uphold the utmost confidentiality across the family, the residences, the schedule, and the household. A non-disclosure agreement is required, and finalists complete an enhanced background check. COMPENSATION Compensation: $170,000 to $185,000 Healthcare: Stipend; the structure is being finalized Long-Term Incentive: After sustained strong performance, eligibility to invest alongside the family in select private opportunities, with financing support provided Paid Time Off: Holidays and 3 weeks paid vacation, sick days, and personal days #J-18808-Ljbffr