Maintenance Field Tech - Columbia, South Carolina

The single-family rental sector has grown fast enough over the past several years that operational infrastructure is now the differentiator. Institutional SFR platforms live or die on how efficiently they turn homes, handle occupied maintenance, and keep residents from churning. The field technician role exists precisely because that work can't be done remotely. Evergreen Residential, a Dallas-based SFR and build-to-rent platform founded in 2021, is building out its Columbia, South Carolina presence and needs a Maintenance Field Technician who can own the on-the-ground work across a scaling residential portfolio.

What the Work Actually Looks Like

This is a mixed-bag field role, and that's what makes it worth understanding before you apply. On any given week, you might complete minor post-renovation punch list repairs on recently turned homes, troubleshoot smart home technology installations, and perform pre-move-in inspections 72 hours ahead of a resident's keys date. You'll also conduct move-out walks with residents, complete occupied maintenance work orders, run HOA violation checks, handle in-person eviction and lockout coordination, and perform recurring occupancy checks. Marketing yard sign placement and removal is also part of the scope.

The KPI review piece matters here. You'll check your progress against performance metrics weekly with the Head of Construction, which means this isn't a role where work disappears into a queue. There's accountability built into the cadence, and you'll need to communicate with residents professionally and promptly on outstanding violations or service issues.

Who Fits This Role

• At least two years of hands-on residential maintenance experience in a related position
• Comfortable working in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Excel, Word) and familiar with resident or property management software
• HVAC certification is preferred and will differentiate your application
• Self-directed and comfortable operating with ambiguity as the portfolio scales
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, particularly with residents

The smart home troubleshooting piece is worth calling out specifically. SFR platforms at institutional scale are increasingly standardizing smart locks, thermostats, and access systems across their portfolios. Technicians who can diagnose and resolve those issues independently become genuinely valuable, and that skill compounds quickly into a differentiator as more operators adopt connected-home technology at scale. If you've got exposure there already, lead with it.

From a career trajectory standpoint, field technicians who perform well in SFR platforms tend to move into market-level maintenance lead roles or construction coordination as portfolios grow. The reporting relationship to the Head of Construction at Evergreen signals that this company tracks and develops field talent rather than treating the position as purely transactional. For someone two to four years into a maintenance career, that kind of visibility is worth more than the title suggests.