Director of Finance- Real Estate and Facilities

Hampton University•Hampton, VA

About The Position

The Director of Finance for Real Estate and Facilities owns the financial picture for everything the University owns, leases, builds, and maintains. The portfolio spans commercial property, investment property, faculty and staff housing, and the University’s physical plant — academic, administrative, and residential buildings, together with the contracted and internal operations that maintain them and the projects that improve them. This is a newly established position. The Director will have the opportunity to shape how the University’s real estate and physical plant finance functions operate, working closely with the Deputy Chief Financial Officer and operational leadership.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, business, or a related field
Six or more years of progressively responsible financial or accounting experience
Strong analytical and quantitative skills — demonstrated ability to work with financial data, build analysis, and explain results clearly
Budget experience — building budgets, monitoring results, and explaining variances to leadership
Demonstrated ability to apply financial controls in the face of operational pressure
Advanced proficiency with Excel and reporting or analytical tools

Nice To Haves

CPA or CMA, or active candidacy
Working knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles applicable to not-for-profit entities
Experience in higher education, real estate, facilities, or multi-entity organizations
Real estate financial analysis experience — pro forma modeling, net operating income analysis, covenant compliance
Experience working with contracts, leases, or vendor agreements
Experience with enterprise financial systems and business intelligence platforms
Experience with applying automation or artificial intelligence tools to financial work

Responsibilities

Prepare and review financial statements for the University’s real estate holdings, including wholly owned properties, joint ventures, and third-party managed assets.
Produce property-level performance reporting — net operating income, occupancy, collections, expense variance, and debt service coverage — and develop performance metrics for managed properties.
Review financial information provided by property managers and partners, and analyze management agreement economics, including fees and reimbursable expenses.
Prepare covenant compliance calculations for financed properties for review by the Deputy Chief Financial Officer, and maintain the compliance calendar.
Prepare financial analysis supporting real estate decisions, including pro forma modeling and market benchmarking.
Analyze faculty and staff housing operating costs, and support internal occupancy and cost allocation for University-owned space.
Support the Director of Physical Plant in budget development, monitoring, and variance analysis for operations, maintenance, utilities, and capital renewal.
Maintain purchase order, encumbrance, and vendor spend monitoring; review requisitions against approved budget authority in accordance with University procurement policy; and raise unresolved control matters in writing.
Provide financial administration for contracted services — including grounds, maintenance, and HVAC and energy — reviewing invoices against contracted rates and scope and monitoring performance against agreement terms.
Provide financial support to internal operations, including vehicle services, warehouse, and trucking, including cost baselines and inventory valuation.
Maintain the deferred maintenance register and support capital planning with cost and condition data.
Develop submission standards for facilities administrative staff and provide training and support.
Maintain a register of operational and services agreements — scope, value, rates, term, and renewal and notice dates — and monitor spend against contract terms and procurement thresholds.
Support competitive processes and contract renewals with cost history and performance analysis.
Track commitments and budget-to-actual position on capital projects using cost data provided by the Project Manager, verify it against the accounting record, and support close-out and capitalization with the Comptroller’s Office.
Issue a monthly financial reporting package for real estate and the physical plant, and participate in a standing monthly review with the Deputy Chief Financial Officer.
Prepare financial reporting and analysis for senior leadership and governance purposes.
Prepare audit workpapers and respond to auditor requests within scope; support accreditation and regulatory reporting.
Maintain documented procedures for recurring financial processes within this position’s scope.
Coordinate with risk management on insurance coverage for the portfolio, and identify potential unrelated business income tax matters for review.
Use the University’s financial systems, business intelligence tools, and available automation and artificial intelligence tools to streamline reconciliation, reporting, contract and invoice review, and exception identification.
Build and maintain dashboards and standing reports, and translate results into insight for leadership.
Create tools, templates, and reporting views for other users in these functions, provide training, and participate in the University’s broader data and automation efforts.
Verify all system-generated output before it is used or reported, cite source data, and apply University data governance requirements.