Senior Back-End Developer - Laravel / Lumen Modernization / APIs / Search / Security

About Us

We are a stealth-mode real estate technology company modernizing an existing platform that supports property search, user registration, saved searches, alerts, dashboards, API-driven workflows, and integrations across frontend, backend, search, and data services.

We are looking for a hands-on Backend Engineer who can help modernize the existing backend codebase, improve security, strengthen APIs, improve search capabilities, and support delivery of new product requirements.

Must-Have Skills

• Strong hands-on experience using AI development tools such as Codex, Claude, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, or similar tools to accelerate coding, debugging, refactoring, testing, documentation, and deployment readiness.
• Ability to use AI tools responsibly while still applying strong engineering judgment, code review discipline, security awareness, and production-quality standards.
• Strong Laravel / PHP backend development experience.
• Experience upgrading and modernizing an existing Laravel codebase.
• Strong API development experience, including RESTful APIs, endpoint design, request/response validation, authentication, and authorization.
• Strong MySQL experience, including schema design, migrations, query optimization, and data integrity.
• Experience with Elasticsearch or similar search technologies.
• Experience improving backend security layers, including access control, input validation, data protection, and secure API behavior.
• Strong Git/GitHub workflow experience.
• Ability to read an existing codebase, identify risks, and deliver improvements without overengineering.

Responsibilities

• Review, upgrade, and modernize the existing Laravel backend codebase.
• Build, improve, and maintain APIs and backend endpoints.
• Support property search, registration, saved searches, alerts, dashboard workflows, and related backend capabilities.
• Improve Elasticsearch integration, search performance, indexing, filters, and search-related backend logic.
• Improve MySQL database structure, migrations, queries, and performance.
• Strengthen backend security, authentication, authorization, validation, and error handling.
• Troubleshoot backend defects, API issues, search issues, and performance problems.
• Collaborate with frontend engineers on API contracts, payloads, validation rules, and integration behavior.
• Work from Jira user stories, acceptance criteria, and product direction.
• Use AI tools as part of the daily development workflow to speed up implementation, testing, refactoring, and documentation.
• Support code reviews, QA validation, release readiness, and deployment support.

Nice-to-Have Skills

• Experience with real estate, marketplace, property search, or listing platforms.
• Experience with Typesense or other modern search alternatives.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines.
• Experience with cloud hosting, server migrations, or infrastructure modernization.
• Experience writing automated backend tests.
• Experience working with Angular frontend integrations.

Interview Requirement

The technical interview will include a hands-on AI-assisted development exercise. Candidates will be expected to use an AI development tool during the interview to review a small code sample, identify issues, propose improvements, and explain the final technical decision. The goal is not just speed, but the ability to use AI effectively while maintaining code quality, security, and engineering judgment.

Engagement Type

Contract position.

Remote (Pacific time prefered)

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a senior hands-on backend engineer who can quickly understand an existing Laravel codebase, modernize it, strengthen security, improve APIs and search functionality, and use AI tools as a serious development accelerator rather than a shortcut.