How to Hire an RV Park Manager (and What to Pay Them)

Why Your Hire-or-Fire Decision Matters More Than You Think

Most RV park investors obsess over cap rates, NOI, and financing structures — then pay almost no attention to who's actually running the park day-to-day. That's backwards.

A bad manager can:

• Tank your online reviews — killing occupancy within 90 days
• Under-collect on utilities and amenity fees
• Ignore maintenance until small problems become $30,000 infrastructure repairs
• Run off your best long-term tenants with poor conflict resolution
• Create legal liability through improper eviction handling or permit violations

A great manager, on the other hand, often increases NOI faster than any value-add capital project. Guest experience is a revenue driver — and the manager owns that experience.

If you're buying your first park and planning to manage remotely, the manager hire is the most important decision you'll make before closing.

Two Models: Resident Manager vs. Property Management Company

Before you write a job post, decide which model fits your park.

Resident (On-Site) Manager

The most common setup for parks under 150 sites. A couple or individual lives on the property — usually in a dedicated site, hookup included — and handles day-to-day operations in exchange for salary or a combination of free site plus stipend.

Best for: Parks where 24/7 presence matters — high-turnover nightly parks, parks with amenity buildings, rural locations where you need eyes on the ground constantly.

Tradeoffs: Harder to fire (they live there), risk of over-familiarity with guests, need for clear boundaries on their off hours.

Property Management Company

Third-party firms that handle operations for a fee — typically 8–15% of gross revenue. Some specialize in outdoor hospitality; most are generalist property managers who dabble in campgrounds. Quality varies wildly.

Best for: Investors building a portfolio of multiple parks who want hands-off management, or parks in markets where finding a quality resident manager is difficult.

Tradeoffs: Higher cost, less control, less guest-relationship quality. Your park is one of dozens on their roster. See our guide to RV park management companies before going this route.

The verdict for most first-time buyers: Start with a resident manager. It's cheaper, more controllable, and builds your operational knowledge before you hand the keys to a third party.

What Does an RV Park Manager Actually Do?

Write the job description before you write the job post. Parks vary — a 40-site seasonal fishing camp has different demands than a 200-site year-round resort with a pool and laundry facility. But core duties almost always include:

Guest-Facing

• Check-ins and check-outs (phone, walk-in, app-assisted)
• Handling complaints, noise issues, and site disputes
• Enforcing park rules — including difficult conversations
• Responding to online reviews (you'll train them on this)
• Upselling amenities: firewood, propane, site upgrades

Operations

• Daily grounds walk — litter, maintenance flags, site readiness
• Coordinating with vendors (landscaping, plumbers, electricians)
• Managing restrooms, laundry, and common area cleanliness
• Utility monitoring — water, electric, sewer
• Seasonal prep (winterization, summer open-up)

Admin

• Operating the reservation system (Campspot, RezStream, Campfire, etc.)
• Daily revenue reporting to ownership
• Monthly occupancy and incident summaries
• Managing long-term tenant agreements and monthly billing

If you're running a park with revenue-generating amenities — a store, pool, or event space — add those duties explicitly. Don't let "other duties as assigned" be a catch-all. It breeds resentment.

What to Pay an RV Park Manager in 2026

Compensation varies significantly by park size, location, and whether housing is included. Here's what the market looks like:

One thing investors consistently get wrong: they try to underpay and then wonder why they can't keep anyone. The cost of a manager vacancy — even for 30 days — typically exceeds months of salary. Guests book elsewhere when no one answers the phone. Reviews tank. Long-term tenants get anxious. Pay market rate.

Performance bonuses tied to occupancy or review scores are increasingly common and work well. Structure them around metrics you control: 4.5+ stars on Google, 80%+ occupancy in peak season, under-budget on maintenance spend.

Where to Find Good Candidates

This is where most park owners get stuck. "I posted on Indeed and got 200 applications from people with zero relevant experience." Here's how to do better:

1. Workamper Networks

Workampers are RVers who trade part-time work for a free campsite and hookups. Many are retired couples with deep customer service backgrounds — former teachers, nurses, managers. They know how to handle people, they already live the RV lifestyle, and they're highly motivated to find good situations.

• Workamper News — The oldest and most established job board for this niche
• Camphost.org — Popular with national forest hosts but also private parks
• Facebook Groups — "Workampers," "Camp Host Jobs," "Full Time RVers" — post your listing and watch the responses

Workamper couples are gold for small parks. They split shifts naturally, cover more hours, and are often more reliable than single employees because their lifestyle depends on keeping the job.

2. Internal Promotion — Your Best Long-Term Tenants

Look first at who's already living in your park. Long-term monthly tenants who've been on-site for years know the property, know the guests, and know the culture. If they have management aptitude, promoting internally creates loyalty and eliminates the learning curve.

This works especially well in retirement-heavy parks where many tenants aren't working and welcome a reason to contribute.

3. Hospitality Industry Refugees

Hotel front desk managers, motel operators, and resort staff are natural fits — they understand reservation systems, guest conflict, and the operational rhythm of hospitality. Post on Indeed and Hospitality Online with RV park compensation spelled out clearly (the free housing component is a huge draw).

4. Outdoor Recreation Circles

State park camp hosts, KOA alumni, and campground association members often know who's looking. The National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC) has a job board worth checking.

What to Look for in Interviews

The technical skills are learnable. The personality traits are not. Screen hard for:

Conflict Resolution

Ask: "Tell me about a time you had to tell a customer something they didn't want to hear. What happened?" Bad answer: vague, no specific example. Good answer: specific situation, clear communication, empathy plus firmness, resolution. This is the core skill. Everything else is secondary.

Ownership Mentality

Ask: "If you noticed a pothole forming in the driveway — not dangerous yet but getting worse — what would you do?" Bad answer: "I'd tell you about it." Good answer: "I'd document it, get a quote, and come to you with the problem AND a solution." You want someone who treats the park like their own.

Tech Comfort

Reservation software, Google reviews, basic accounting. They don't need to be technical — but they can't be afraid of learning new tools. Ask what software they've used and watch how confidently they answer.

Boundary Clarity

For resident managers especially: discuss off-hours expectations upfront. What happens at 2am when a guest's sewer line backs up? What's the escalation path? Make sure your vision and theirs align before they move in.

How to Structure the Relationship for Success

Most manager failures aren't about the person — they're about the setup. Avoid the most common traps:

Write Everything Down

Create a manager handbook before day one: park rules, escalation matrix, vendor contacts, daily checklist, maintenance thresholds (what can they authorize without calling you — $500? $1,000?), and emergency protocols. Don't make them guess. Guessing creates mistakes and resentment.

Weekly Check-ins, Not Surveillance

A weekly 15-minute call — not to micromanage, but to stay connected and catch small problems before they grow. Daily check-ins signal distrust and burn people out. Monthly check-ins let problems fester. Weekly is the sweet spot.

Give Them Authority to Solve Problems

The manager who has to call the owner before authorizing a $200 plumber visit will quickly become a manager who lets problems slide. Set a clear spending threshold. Trust them inside it. This is the foundation of a remote management system that actually works.

Tie Incentives to What You Actually Care About

If you want great reviews: bonus on Google rating. If you want high occupancy: bonus on weekend fill rate. If you want maintenance caught early: bonus on zero deferred maintenance at annual inspection. Align incentives with outcomes, not hours.

When — and How — to Let Someone Go

This is hardest with resident managers because their job and their home are the same thing. Know this before you hire:

• Have a termination clause in the employment agreement — including a clear timeline for vacating the site (30 days is typical)
• Document performance issues in writing — verbal warnings aren't enough for a housing-involved termination
• Know your state's landlord-tenant law — even in an employment context, the housing component can complicate things depending on how it's structured. Get a local attorney to review your agreement before you hire anyone.
• Be decisive — A failing manager costs you more every week you delay. A toxic personality in a resident manager position poisons the guest experience daily. Don't let loyalty override judgment.

The cleaner your documentation going in, the cleaner the exit going out.

State Matters: Where You're Located Changes Everything

Manager availability, compensation expectations, and employment law vary significantly by state. Parks in Florida and Arizona — two of the highest-concentration RV states — have deep talent pools of retirees looking for workamper situations. Rural parks in states like Montana or Wyoming face a thinner candidate pool and may need to pay more or provide more amenity perks to attract quality candidates.

Browse our Florida RV park data to understand what the market looks like in one of the most active states — including park density and site counts that affect how competitive your employment offer needs to be.

The Bottom Line

Hire slow. The urgency you feel to "get someone in there" right after closing often leads to a bad hire. Take 4–6 weeks before closing to start recruiting. Build your handbook before they arrive. Set clear expectations in writing. Pay fairly. Trust, but verify through systems — not surveillance.

Done right, a great manager is the highest-ROI hire in your park. They run the operation so you don't have to, protect your asset, and can be the difference between an 8% cap rate and a 12% one through better guest experience and tighter cost control.

If you're still in the acquisition phase, don't underestimate management costs in your operating expense model — they're real and they matter to your returns. And when you're analyzing which parks to buy, having 11,600+ properties in our database with owner contact data means you can find the right park in the right market to build around. See below.