Senior Application Developer

Essex Property Trust•Irvine, CA

7d•$123,000 - $153,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Application Developer designs, builds, and supports moderate to highly complex applications on a serverless, cloud-native architecture using an AI-first, agentic development workflow. AI coding agents write much of the code, while developers own architecture, requirements and specifications, testing, and code review. The role is suited to an experienced full-stack engineer working with AI-assisted software development. The position is part of Essex Technology, a team focused on supporting the company’s technology needs and advancing its technology-forward future. Work includes developing applications for internal and external customers, maintaining and modernizing existing applications, and contributing to architecture, security, quality, performance, and technology practices. Work is primarily office-based and requires in-person attendance at Essex’s corporate offices in Irvine or Woodland Hills at least four days per week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. The role may require minimal travel for occasional meetings, training, or conferences. New hires generally start at $123,000–$153,000 per year, depending on relevant factors. The role is also eligible for Essex’s discretionary Annual Bonus program.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a related discipline.
At least 8 years of hands-on full-stack web application development across requirements, design, build, testing, deployment, and support.
Deep knowledge of software architecture and design patterns, including separation of concerns, modular design, and API design.
Strong automated testing skills covering unit, integration, end-to-end, and regression testing, and test-driven development.
Ability to capture workable requirements from end users and business stakeholders and write unambiguous specifications for engineers or AI agents.
Strong code-review skills to assess AI-generated code for correctness, security, and maintainability.
Experience with AI coding tools such as Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, or Cursor, or demonstrated eagerness to adopt them.
Experience building serverless applications, such as with AWS Lambda or Vercel, and with CI/CD and DevOps practices.
Strong knowledge of HTML5, CSS, JavaScript, and at least one backend language.
Strong knowledge of SQL; experience with Snowflake and PostgreSQL, MySQL, or SQL Server.
Experience implementing responsive design and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards.
Proficiency with Git and integrating web services and APIs, including REST and SOAP.
Experience developing in web content management frameworks.
Ability to create clear system design, process, and user documentation, including context files for AI agents.
Experience in agile software development and a proven record of on-time delivery.
Excellent written and verbal communication, organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to communicate technical concepts to non-technical associates and mentor junior developers.
Collaborative attitude, quality-first and verify-don’t-assume mindset, and curiosity to continue learning as AI evolves.
Ability to work Monday through Friday and attend in person at Essex’s Irvine or Woodland Hills corporate offices at least four days per week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Ability to sit or stand for extended periods and use standard office equipment.

Nice To Haves

Experience with .NET, C#, TypeScript, Next.js, React, or Vue.js.
Experience building AI/LLM-powered features.
Ability to provide technical guidance or training to coworkers and coordinate work or assign tasks.

Responsibilities

Design and develop web applications for internal and external customers using agentic AI tools and sound usability concepts.
Build solutions across front-end UI, back-end APIs, and data on serverless architecture, using low-code tools where appropriate.
Work with business stakeholders to develop requirements, functional specifications, and acceptance criteria.
Define architecture, data models, and design patterns, and guide AI agents in implementing them.
Own unit, integration, and regression testing strategies for validating AI-generated code.
Review AI-generated code and take a lead role in code quality, security, and performance.
Maintain, support, and modernize existing applications, including using AI to analyze, document, and refactor legacy code.
Help lead architecture and design reviews, backlog refinement, and other scrum meetings.
Triage and resolve production issues and deploy changes through automated CI/CD pipelines.
Contribute to technology best practices, including secure and responsible use of AI tools.
Perform other tasks as assigned.
Communicate technical concepts to non-technical associates and provide informal technical guidance or training to coworkers.
May coordinate work and assign tasks.