Building Maintenance Jobs in the United States

Building Maintenance Jobs Overview

Keeping an office building, apartment complex, school, or medical center in good condition takes a lot of work. A small apartment building with fewer than 10 units might need one person to clean common areas, shovel snow, and make minor repairs. Larger facilities like hospitals or multi-floor office buildings need to hire more employees to be responsible for a wider variety of building maintenance jobs. The responsibilities of a building maintenance crew can include the following:

• Janitorial or cleaning duties like vacuuming, mopping floors, and collecting trash.
• Repairs and maintenance such as painting, drywall, and window replacements.
• Ensuring machines, including copiers and A/V equipment, are running smoothly.
• Installing phone extensions, computer lines, and routers.
• Maintaining and repairing plumbing, heating, ventilation, and cooling systems.
• Outdoor landscaping, mowing, and leaf removal.
• Pest control.

Part of having a building maintenance job is knowing when to undertake a task like painting or fixing a leaky drain versus calling in a specialist like a plumber or an electrician.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics identifies five workplaces that need the most building maintenance workers. These are:

• Building for rent or lease: 21%
• Manufacturing facilities: 13%
• Government buildings: 12%
• Schools: 9%
• Healthcare facilities: 7%

Here are some building maintenance jobs you can pursue:

• Office cleaner jobs
• Landscaping jobs
• Pest controller jobs
• Window cleaner jobs

Building Maintenance Training and Skills

You can be hired to work in most building maintenance positions with a high school diploma or equivalent and then learn your specific duties on the job. Along with manual skills, you’ll need to have good communication and customer-service skills to interact with building residents and other workers. Being a good troubleshooter is essential so you can find solutions to problems.

Take a look at these descriptions for seven building maintenance jobs from Monster to see what else might interest you and what employers look for.

Update Your Resume for Jobs in Building Maintenance

You only get one chance to make a first impression. When you’re job hunting, that first impression is your resume. Ensure the employer knows that your skills and experience fit the job by having a well-written and organized resume. If you’re stuck about where to start, look at this resume for a handyman. It includes many of the things you need on your building maintenance resume. It has a section on key skills and a paragraph to start the resume that summarizes who you are and what you’ve accomplished.

You’ll also need a cover letter like this one for a janitor to accompany your resume. You can use your cover letter to show how your skills and experience match the points in the job posting.

Interviewing for a Building Maintenance Job

It’s common to be a bit nervous about a job interview. Monster believes that preparation is the best way to calm pre-interview jitters. To help you anticipate questions, we’ve put together lists of questions for many different professions and situations. Read these six sample interview questions for a custodian. You can also look at questions Monster has researched for housekeeping jobs.

Interviewers tend to ask certain questions in nearly every interview. Here are three of the most common interview questions:

• What are your goals?
• What are three positive things your last boss would say about you?
• When were you most satisfied in your job.

How Much Do Building Maintenance Jobs Pay?

According to Monster, the median pay for a maintenance helper is $14.83 per hour. As you move up in your career, you’ll see the median salary for a maintenance manager can go to $61,268. Here are the median salaries for other jobs in building maintenance:

• Janitor: $12.38 per hour
• Pest Control Technician: $34,859 per year
• Landscaping/Groundskeeping: $14.10 per hour
• Facilities Manager: $63,754 per year

You can look at Monster’s Salary Tools to see what salary to expect for your job title and location. The salary page will also tell you the pay for related jobs.

Want to Learn More About a Company You’re Interested In?

If you’re applying to an unfamiliar organization, Monster’s Company Profiles are a way to learn about them to see if they might be a good fit for you. When you find a company in our database, you’ll learn things like:

• how they describe their products.
• what they post on social media.
• how many people they employ.

Build a Better Job Search With Monster

You know how to look for a job—just scan postings for building maintenance jobs and apply. We have a better idea. Use Monster’s unique tool to attract employers’ attention before you send your resume. Create a profile on Monster, and you’ll be on display for recruiters and hiring managers looking for someone like you. Your profile will also get the Monster machinery in motion to send job postings and career advice to your inbox.