Maintenance Area Lead (Fremont Region)

Skills at the Center of This Role

This position runs on a specific combination of hands-on trades knowledge and operational coordination. You need to be comfortable pulling a toilet, troubleshooting an irrigation timer, and walking a unit punch list, but you also need to think like a scheduler and a trainer. The Maintenance Area Lead role at MidPen Housing covers multiple affordable housing communities across the Fremont region, so the job shifts constantly between sites, tasks, and people. Single-site maintenance techs who've never had to triage competing priorities across properties will find this adjustment real.

Multi-site work demands strong time management above almost everything else. On any given day, you might be covering a property whose maintenance tech called out sick, coordinating a vendor walkthrough at a second site, and closing out deferred work orders before an upcoming TCAC or REAC inspection. Familiarity with affordable housing regulatory inspections isn't a nice-to-have here. It's central to the job.

What You'll Be Managing Day to Day

MidPen is looking for someone who can support site teams without creating dependency. That means coaching on-site staff toward better documentation habits, better preventive maintenance follow-through, and cleaner common areas, while also jumping in physically when coverage gaps appear. This is a working lead position. You'll be doing make-readies, painting, plumbing repairs, appliance servicing, and grounds work alongside the teams you're supporting.

• Coordinate and assist with unit inspections, safety inspections, and pre-agency inspections across the region
• Prepare vacated units for re-occupancy: cleaning, painting, appliance servicing, and finish repairs
• Direct contractors and service providers, and contribute input toward preventive maintenance program improvements and long-term capital planning
• Cover maintenance operations at sites during staff absences
• Maintain inventory control of tools, equipment, and supplies across properties
• Ensure work orders are accurately completed, closed, and documented; assist with utility routing and shutoff documentation
• Serve as a resource to site staff on fire and life safety items, training, and special projects

Emergency response comes with the territory. Evening and weekend calls are part of this role, and you'll need a valid California driver's license, reliable transportation, and current auto insurance to travel between properties regularly.

What Makes a Strong Candidate Here

MidPen's portfolio spans more than 130 properties across Northern California, housing working families, seniors, and residents with special needs. Affordable housing maintenance carries compliance layers that market-rate portfolios don't. Candidates who've worked in regulated affordable housing and have direct experience with REAC, TCAC, or MOR inspections will be several steps ahead. Three years of supervisory experience overseeing crews and managing turnovers at multiple sites is required, not preferred.

The stronger candidates we've seen in roles like this bring a coaching mindset. You're not just fixing things. You're also raising the baseline quality of the teams around you, which takes patience and genuine communication skills. MidPen's mission focus is real, and residents here often have fewer options and more vulnerabilities than the typical renter. That context shapes how maintenance work gets done.

Pay ranges from $34.62 to $38.94 per hour depending on experience, with benefits including health, dental, vision, a 403(b) retirement plan, paid parental leave, and an employee education reimbursement program.