Build-to-Rent Recruitment in Australia:

The Complete Guide

Australia’s Build-to-Rent (BTR) sector has moved from “emerging” to “institutional” in a remarkably short period of time.

Billions of dollars of capital are now committed. Major platforms are scaling nationally. New assets are launching across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth every quarter.

But while the development, capital and delivery side of Build-to-Rent is now well understood, one part of the model is still consistently underestimated:

This is a practical, operator-led guide to Build-to-Rent recruitment in Australia.

Building and scaling the right operating team.

In this guide, we’ll cover:

• What makes Build-to-Rent fundamentally different from traditional property models
• Why BTR requires a different recruitment approach
• The key roles that actually matter
• Where most hiring mistakes happen
• Salary realities in today’s market
• And what leading operators are doing differently

What is Build-to-Rent (And Why It’s Different)?

Build-to-Rent is not just “rental apartments done at scale”.

At its core, BTR is:

• A long-term operating business, not a sell-down model
• A service-led, experience-driven residential product
• A brand, not just a building
• And a platform, not a collection of individual assets

Success is driven less by:

• One-off leasing transactions

And more by:

• Resident experience
• Retention
• Community
• Culture
• And consistent operational execution across assets

This is why some hires from traditional property management or pure development backgrounds struggle when they move into BTR environments.

👉 in our next article we explain this in more detail: What Makes Build-to-Rent Different from Traditional Property Management? 

https://www.lsrecruitment.com.au/btr-property-management/

Why Build -to – Rent Needs A Different Recruitment Approach?

Most property recruitment in Australia still comes from one of two worlds:

• Traditional residential / commercial property management
• Or development and project delivery

BTR sits somewhere in between — and beyond both. It borrows from:

• Property
• Hospitality
• Asset management
• Customer experience
• And platform operations

But it behaves like:

A consumer service business with a long-term customer relationship.

This changes what “good” looks like in almost every role:

• Leadership style
• Decision making
• Team structure
• Performance management
• And culture

This is also why generic recruiters often:

• Overweight CVs and brand names
• Underestimate behavioural and service capability
• And place people who look right on paper but fail in practice

The Key Roles in a Build – to – Rent Platform

While structures differ by operator and stage of growth, most successful BTR platforms are built around a combination of:

Onsite / Asset Leadership

• General Manager / Operations Manager
• Resident Experience Manager
• Leasing Manager
• Tenancy / Property Management
• Building & Facilities Operations

Platform / Head Office

• Head of Operations
• Asset Management
• Marketing & Brand
• Finance
• People & Culture

The real challenge is not just filling these roles, but:

• Getting the sequence right
• And hiring people who can operate in ambiguity, growth and change

👉 Later we break this down in detail in: The Key Roles Every Build-to-Rent Platform Needs to Scale

The Most Common Build-to-Rent Hiring Mistakes

Across the sector, we repeatedly see the same problems:

1. Hiring “Traditional Property” Profiles into Experience-Led Roles

Technically strong. Culturally misaligned. Poor service mindset.

2. Overweighting Brand Names Instead of Operating Behaviour

Big logos do not guarantee hands-on leadership or platform thinking.

3. Hiring Too Late

Teams get built reactively during lease-up or stabilisation instead of ahead of growth.

4. Underestimating Onsite Leadership

One poor GM or Ops Lead can destroy an asset’s culture in months.

Final Thought: Build-to-Rent Is An Operating Business First

The Build-to-Rent sector will not be won by:

• The best buildings
• Or the cheapest capital

It will be won by:

The teams who operate them best.

Getting recruitment right in BTR is not a support function.

It is a strategic advantage.

What Makes Living Sectors Recruitment Different?

At Living Sectors Recruitment, we don’t recruit “property people”.

We recruit:

Operators, leaders, and builders of living businesses.

We work across:

• Build-to-Rent
• Student Accommodation
• Retirement Living
• Affordable & Community Housing

We partner with:

• Developers
• Operators
• Funds and REITs
• And platform businesses

And we focus on:

• Behaviour, not just background
• Operating capability, not just CVs
• Long-term fit, not short-term placements

Want to Talk?

If you’re:

• Launching a new asset
• Scaling a platform
• Or rethinking your operating model

We’re always happy to share what we’re seeing in the market — even if you don’t end up using us.

Byron.ellis@lsrecruitment.com.au 0472 777 112

andrea.ellis@lsrecruitment.com.au 0420 597946