Assistant Community Manager

The Assistant Community Manager role sits right at the intersection of leasing, operations, and finance. At a well-run property, this person is the engine behind day-to-day continuity. At Hawthorne Residential Partners, a top-50 multifamily operator with deep Southeast roots, this position at Hawthorne at Southside in Asheville carries real responsibility across all three areas.

What This Role Actually Covers

On the leasing side, you'll handle tours, follow up on leads, guide prospects through applications, and work renewals. Occupancy doesn't manage itself, and this position owns a meaningful piece of that outcome. You'll also manage the community's social media presence, which at most properties now means consistent content tied to resident events and community engagement rather than a few posts a month.

The financial side is where a lot of ACMs either prove themselves or struggle. You'll post payments, run ledger reviews, monitor delinquency, make weekly follow-up calls, and coordinate eviction procedures when it gets to that point. Hawthorne expects you to read the financials and act on them, not just pass paperwork up the chain. If you've never done ledger audits or tracked delinquency through to legal, that's a skill set you'll build quickly here.

When the Community Manager is out, you run the site. That's not a footnote in the job description. It means you need to be comfortable setting the tone for the team and handling whatever comes through the door.

What Separates Strong Candidates from Average Ones

Two years of property management experience is preferred, and at least six months at the ACM level. The CALP designation is a plus but not required. What actually separates a strong candidate here isn't the credential. It's whether you can hold a delinquency conversation with a resident in the morning, pivot to a tour in the afternoon, and close a renewal before the office shuts down. That range of gear-shifting is the job.

Asheville's rental market has tightened and loosened in cycles, and Class A communities there compete on experience as much as price. Strong retention instincts matter. Concessions are easy to offer; keeping a resident because you actually resolved their concern is harder and worth more to the NOI.

Compensation and Career Path

The role pays hourly and includes monthly leasing and renewal commissions plus quarterly performance bonuses. Benefits include medical, dental, and vision coverage, a 401k match, paid time off (including your birthday), pet insurance, paid parental and adoption leave, telehealth access, and company-paid life insurance.

Hawthorne runs a formal Career Path Program, and the ACM-to-Community Manager track is real. If you're looking to get to the CM seat, this is a legitimate step. The company's Learning and Development team is structured to support that progression, not just mention it in a job posting.

• High school diploma or GED required
• Two years of property management experience preferred
• Six months of ACM experience preferred
• Valid driver's license required
• CALP accreditation a plus
• Weekend availability required on a rotating basis

Office hours run Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 6 PM, and Saturdays 10 AM to 4 PM, with one weekday off to keep the schedule at 40 hours. Evening and weekend availability may come up around resident events.