Community Manager (414 Petaluma)

Affordable housing property management sits at the intersection of compliance-heavy operations and deeply human work. The Community Manager role exists because someone has to hold both of those realities at once: keeping a property financially sound and regulatorily airtight while also being the person residents actually trust. At MidPen Housing, a nonprofit with over five decades of affordable housing development across Northern California, that dual expectation is baked into the culture.

This opening is for 414 Petaluma, a community in MidPen's portfolio of more than 142 properties serving working families, seniors, and residents with special needs. You'd report to the Property Manager and lead a small on-site team, with day-to-day accountability for everything from fiscal operations to resident certifications to unit turns.

What This Role Actually Involves

On the operations side, you'll manage rent collection, security deposits, delinquency, and bank deposits. You'll run re-certifications and income verifications under HUD, TCAC, and other regulatory frameworks. Compliance documentation, Fair Housing protocols, lease renewals, waitlist management, and incident reporting are all yours. You'll also coordinate preventative maintenance schedules, conduct daily property inspections, and make sure unit turnovers happen within established timeframes.

On the people side, you'll supervise and coach your on-site staff, build relationships with community partners and local agencies, and serve as the steady presence residents turn to when something goes wrong. MidPen's Resident Services team works alongside property management, so you won't be the only support system, but you will be the most visible one.

One honest note: affordable housing compliance, especially in a tax credit property, generates a real documentation load. Strong candidates tend to be people who find structure useful rather than burdensome, and who can context-switch between a sensitive resident conversation and a certification audit without losing focus on either.

What MidPen Is Looking For

• An associate degree plus at least three years of multifamily residential management experience, with a minimum of two years specifically in affordable housing (or an equivalent combination)
• At least one year of supervisory experience with demonstrated ability to develop staff
• Tax Credit Specialist (TCS) or Certified Occupancy Specialist (COS) certification, or the ability to earn one within six months (MidPen covers the cost)
• Current working knowledge of Fair Housing laws, with the ability to pass the FHA assessment within the first 60 days
• Comfort with Microsoft Office and RealPage property management software
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to read and interpret regulatory documents

The pay range for this role is $25.62 to $28.82 per hour, based on experience and qualifications. Company-provided on-site housing is available, which is notable given Petaluma's rental market. Benefits include health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, a 403(b) retirement plan, paid parental leave, an employee education reimbursement program, FSA options, an EAP, pet insurance, paid time off, company holidays, and wellness days.

For candidates thinking about trajectory: Community Manager roles at well-run affordable housing nonprofits often develop into Property Manager or Regional Manager positions, particularly for people who strengthen their compliance credentials and demonstrate consistent NOI performance over time. MidPen's scale across 12 counties means internal mobility is a realistic path, not just a talking point.