Controller – Vacation Rental Portfolio (US)

About the role

Howard Financial is seeking a Controller to oversee the financial integrity of a portfolio of U.S. vacation‑rental clients. You will bridge day‑to‑day bookkeeping with executive‑level strategy, ensuring accurate reporting and compliance for short‑term rental businesses.

Key responsibilities

• Manage full month‑end close for multiple STR clients, delivering accurate P&L statements and balance sheets.
• Oversee trust accounting, reconciling guest payments, security deposits, and cleaning fees, and ensure timely owner statements and distributions.
• Track and report industry‑specific KPIs such as RevPAR, ADR, and occupancy rates.
• Review work of staff accountants and bookkeepers for US GAAP and client SOP compliance.
• Integrate data between Property Management Systems (e.g., Guesty, Hostaway, Streamline) and accounting platforms (QuickBooks Online, NetSuite).
• Serve as primary contact for client financial inquiries, explaining variances and performance insights.

Required profile

• Minimum 4 years of accounting experience within the U.S. vacation‑rental/short‑term‑rental industry.
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting or Finance.
• Strong knowledge of US GAAP and ability to apply it to STR accounting.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication (C1/C2 level).

Required skills

• Advanced proficiency in QuickBooks Online.
• Experience with at least one PMS (Guesty, Hostaway, Streamline, or similar).
• Expert‑level Excel skills (VLOOKUP, Pivot Tables, data cleaning).
• Familiarity with NetSuite or similar ERP systems.