Controller - Real Estate

Etude; Town of Niles (NY); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Etude, a diversified real estate and investment company in New York, is hiring a Controller to own accounting and financial reporting for our commercial real estate assets and investment portfolio. You will lead a team of staff accountants, set standards, and ensure the integrity of every number presented to leadership and partners.

You will build scalable processes and systems to support growth without headcount exploding, while flagging issues early and partnering with auditors, lenders, and

Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive accounting experience, with significant time in commercial real estate.
• Active CPA license.
• Deep knowledge of GAAP and property-level accounting.
• Experience with investment accounting and cash management across multiple entities.
• A track record of owning the month-end and year-end close across multiple properties and legal entities.
• Experience leading and developing a team of accountants.
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, and variance analysis.
• Advanced Excel and fluency with accounting and reporting systems.
• You use AI tools in your work every day and can walk us through real examples.

Responsibilities

• Own the close: Lead monthly, quarterly, and year-end close across properties, investments, and legal entities.
• Direct the consolidation: Guide staff through property-level rollup and review results for accuracy.
• Account for industrials investments: Manage investment accounting, capital contributions, distributions, and reporting.
• Oversee cash: Set controls over cash across real estate and investments; ensure liquidity visibility.
• Report to leadership: Deliver financial statements and management reports for capital decisions.
• Plan: Partner on budgets, forecasts, and variance analysis; explain movements.
• Control: Set accounting policies, procedures, and intercompany controls.
• Support transactions: Lead accounting diligence on acquisitions, dispositions, financings, and new investments.
• Work with outside partners: Serve as main contact for auditors, tax advisors, lenders, and managers.
• Automate: Redesign workflows with AI tools to increase analysis time.
• Build the team: Hire, coach, and develop staff accountants.

Skills

CPA license

GAAP expertise

Investment accounting

Budgeting & forecasting

Staff development

Advanced Excel

AI tools usage

Detail-oriented

Independent & fast-paced

Tools

Accounting software

Job description

About the business

Etude operates in insurance, commercial real estate, and industrials. Our insurance business covers more than 5,000 properties with billions of dollars in insured value. Our real estate business owns approximately $1B of commercial property alongside the Kinder Family Office. Our industrial business is developing a multibillion-dollar, 40-acre steelworks to secure the domestic supply chain for electrical infrastructure.

About the team

We are roughly a 100-person team. We hire high-agency people and give them autonomy, responsibility, and diverse problems to work on. We operate with the intensity of a small company where every person’s work is visible and believe responsiveness is a form of respect. If you’re looking for a place to sharpen your craft alongside people who take their work seriously, you’ll fit right in.

About the role

We’re hiring a Controller to own accounting and financial reporting for our commercial real estate businesses, along with investment accounting and cash management across our industrials investments. You’ll lead a team of staff accountants, set the standards they work to, and stand behind every number that reaches Etude leadership and our partners. You’ll build the processes and systems that let the business grow without headcount growing at the same rate, and you’ll flag issues before anyone asks.

What you’ll do

• Own the close: Lead the monthly, quarterly, and year-end close across properties, investments, and legal entities. Set the calendar, define review standards, and sign off on the financial statements.
• Direct the consolidation: Guide staff accountants through the property-level rollup, and review the results for accuracy, consistency, and what they say about performance.
• Account for industrials investments: Own investment accounting for our industrials holdings, including capital contributions, distributions, and investment-level reporting.
• Oversee cash: Set controls over cash activity across the real estate portfolio and industrials investments, including distributions, funding requirements, and capital calls. Keep liquidity visible across both businesses.
• Report to leadership: Deliver financial statements and management reports that leadership and our partners rely on to make capital decisions.
• Plan: Partner with leadership on budgets, forecasts, and variance analysis. Explain what moved and why.
• Control: Set accounting policies, procedures, and internal controls. Keep intercompany accounting clean across every entity.
• Support transactions: Lead accounting diligence on acquisitions, dispositions, financings, and new investments.
• Work with outside partners: Serve as the main contact for auditors, tax advisors, lenders, and property managers.
• Automate: Redesign workflows with AI tools and better systems so your team spends its time on analysis instead of manual work.
• Build the team: Hire, coach, and develop staff accountants, and raise the standard of their work.

We’re looking for someone who meets the minimum requirements. The preferred qualifications are a plus, not a requirement.

Minimum requirements

• 7+ years of progressive accounting experience, with significant time in commercial real estate
• Active CPA license
• Deep knowledge of GAAP and property-level accounting
• Experience with investment accounting and cash management across multiple entities
• A track record of owning the month-end and year-end close across multiple properties and legal entities
• Experience leading and developing a team of accountants
• Experience with budgeting, forecasting, and variance analysis
• Advanced Excel and fluency with accounting and reporting systems
• You use AI tools (OpenAI, Anthropic, or similar) in your work every day, and you can walk us through real examples
• You’re precise on details and can see what they mean for the business
• You work independently, set clear priorities, and move quickly

Preferred qualifications

• Audit experience in real estate at a Big 4 or national firm
• Experience with operating real estate run by third-party managers
• Experience with joint venture structures, consolidations, or fund reporting

If you don’t have all the qualifications listed, don’t worry! We understand everyone’s career path is unique and still encourage you to apply if you feel this role is aligned with your career trajectory.

Employment at Etude is contingent upon a satisfactory verification of a general and criminal background check.