Controller

Job Description

Our Client, Schaefer Homes is hiring an experienced Controller to own the books, the close, and the numbers that run the company. This is a hands-on leadership role, not a back-office seat: you will run accounting in Mark Systems (ECI), lead a small accounting team, and give the President and CEO accurate, on-time financials they can make decisions with.

Reports to: President and CRO. The Controller owns the accounting function end to end, including the working relationship with our accounting firm on the annual review and tax engagement. Lender relationships and capital planning sit with the President and CEO today, and the Controller is expected to grow into them.

Growth path: They are hiring a Controller who can earn the CFO seat. The person who takes them from reviewed financials to audit-ready, builds the forecasting and reporting discipline a growing builder needs, and becomes a trusted voice to ownership and thier lenders will have a clear path to that title.

Location: Schaefer Homes office, Maryland. On-site; this role works daily with construction, purchasing, and sales.

Core responsibilities

Accounting and close

• Own the monthly, quarterly, and annual close in Mark Systems; deliver a full financial package (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow, job cost, WIP) on a fixed calendar.

• Maintain job cost and WIP integrity: budgets loaded at start, variance POs coded correctly, cost-to-complete reviewed monthly, settlements closed out within the month they fund.

• Own the general ledger, reconciliations, fixed assets, intercompany, and accruals, with every balance supported and explained.

• Manage lot and construction loan draws, lender draw packages, and payoff reconciliations at settlement.

Cash, AP, and AR

• Own the company cash forecast. Build and maintain a 12-week rolling forecast, update it weekly, review it with the President, and own the accuracy of every line in it: settlements, draws, lot takedowns, payroll, and vendor payments.

• Run the weekly AP cycle off that forecast; manage payment timing and vendor terms, and monitor vendor concentration and aging.

• Oversee settlement proceeds, deposits, earnest money, and customer accounts.

• Set and enforce vendor onboarding, lien waiver, and insurance-certificate compliance.

Reporting and planning support

• Produce budget-vs-actual by community and by home against the 2026 plan; explain every material variance in plain English.

• Support the annual business plan, the capitalization/WIP allocation model, and the profitability bonus calculation with clean, defensible numbers.

• Build and maintain the KPI dashboard leadership runs the business from: margin per home, cycle time cost, overhead absorption, backlog value.

Compliance and controls

• Own the CLA relationship for the annual accounting review and tax prep; get them what they need the first time. Lead the company’s move from reviewed to audit-ready financials: closed-out schedules, documented controls, and a clean PBC list.

• Own sales tax, property tax, 1099s, business licenses, and insurance renewals with the brokers.

• Design and document internal controls fit for a company our size: segregation of duties, approval limits, PO discipline.

Team and systems

• Lead, train, and hold accountable the accounting staff (AP, AR/settlements).

• Be the Mark Systems power user for the company: own the chart of accounts, cost codes, reports, and integrations with purchasing and construction.

• Work shoulder-to-shoulder with purchasing, construction, sales, and land. The numbers are only right if the field inputs are right, and you own fixing that loop.

Qualifications

Required

• 8+ years of progressive accounting experience, including 3+ years as Controller or Assistant Controller.

• Homebuilding or residential construction accounting required: job cost, WIP, lot and construction draws, settlement accounting, percentage-of-completion.

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance.

• Hands-on ERP ownership. Mark Systems (ECI) strongly preferred; Sage 300 CRE, BuildPro/Hyphen, or NEWSTAR experience is a reasonable bridge.

• Advanced Excel, including building and owning financial models.

• Proven experience managing a small team and holding people to deadlines.

Preferred

• CPA, active or inactive.

• Public accounting background with homebuilder or construction clients.

• Experience taking a company from reviewed to audited financials, and serving as primary contact for the auditors and for lender reporting.

• Experience supporting a profitability-based bonus plan or similar incentive comp.

Who does well here

• You are top-level talent and you want to grow. This role is built for someone who wants the CFO seat and is willing to earn it.

• You tell it like it is. Good news or bad, leadership hears it first and hears it straight.

• You are comfortable in a company that is scaling fast, where process is still being built and you are expected to build it. Disciplined cash and job-cost management is a strength you bring, not a chore.

• You see accounting as a service to the people building and selling homes, not a gate they have to get through.

Compensation and how to apply

• Salary range: $125,000 – $150,000, based on experience

• Bonus: Up to 30% of base salary through the Schaefer Homes profitability bonus plan, tied to company profit and the KRAs above.

• Benefits: Health benefits, a 401(k) program, and 3 weeks of PTO

• Schedule: Full-time, on-site.

To apply, send a resume and a short note on two things: the most meaningful accounting or process improvement you have led and what it changed, and where you want to be in five years.

Schaefer Homes is an equal opportunity employer.