Private House Manager Placement
for Discerning Households
What Is a Private House Manager?
Somewhere between work, kids, travel, and everything else, the list of things that never quite get done keeps growing. The contractor needs to be followed up with. The pantry needs a real system. Someone needs to be home when the repairman comes. The guest room should be ready before the in-laws arrive. And nobody has time to do any of it the way it actually deserves to be done.
That is what a house manager is for. Not a cleaner who does a little extra. Not a personal assistant who works from their phone. Someone who is genuinely embedded in the household — who understands how it runs, creates systems within it, handles the follow-through that always falls through the cracks, and makes sure the home is actually ready for the family who lives in it.
MHM’s primary markets are Chicago and South Florida — and we work with select families nationwide.
What Does a House Manager Actually Do?
For many families, a private house manager is the person who handles everything the principal would do if they had more time. Households that hire a house manager through MHM often have a housekeeper, perhaps a nanny, and a running list of things that simply never get finished. The house manager becomes the person who finishes them. They organize the closets and create systems that hold. They research and vet contractors, follow up so the principal doesn’t have to, and make sure someone is home when the repairman shows up. They plan events, run errands, manage the calendar, coordinate vendors, and keep the home in the kind of order that lets a family actually enjoy it. A household manager in this role is hands-on, embedded in the daily life of the home, and functions as a genuine extension of the principal.
Whether the household has a full team or just the family, the foundation is the same. A great house manager understands the home from the inside out, takes ownership without being asked, and creates a standard of order that becomes the baseline — not a one-time project.
Private House Manager Responsibilities
A house manager job description varies by household, but the common thread is complete ownership of the home’s daily and ongoing operations. A private house manager specializes in the interior — managing household inventory, maintaining par levels of supplies, tracking what the home needs before it runs out, and keeping every room functioning to the standard the principal expects. Private house manager responsibilities typically include:
- Running errands, grocery shopping, and household supply procurement
- Mail, package, and correspondence management
- Pet care coordination
- Tidying, organizing closets, pantry, and shared spaces
- Creating and maintaining household organization systems
- Researching, vetting, and scheduling vendors and contractors
- Event planning, preparation, and day-of logistics
- Vehicle and property maintenance oversight
- Household bill payment and account management
- Staff scheduling, oversight, and communication
- Building and maintaining the household manual
A household manager placed through MHM is also often the single point of contact for all outside parties — vendors, contractors, delivery services, and staff — handling everything that would otherwise reach the principal. For families with secondary or seasonal properties, the house manager coordinates with estate or property managers to keep all locations running to the same standard.
The Nanny/House Manager: A Role Designed for Busy Households
For families with school-age children who don’t need a full-time nanny but still need the household genuinely managed, the nanny/house manager hybrid fills a gap that neither role covers alone. During school hours, the focus is squarely on the household: errands, organization projects, vendor coordination, event planning, keeping the home in order. When the children are home, the role shifts — school pickups, activities, homework, family logistics.
This is not a nanny who also tidies up, and it is not a house manager who occasionally watches the children. The household management piece is real — this person understands how the home operates, creates and maintains systems within it, and is the point of contact for everything that runs through it. The childcare piece is equally real. Both have to be true for the role to work.
MHM places nanny/house managers regularly in both Chicago and South Florida. Candidates for this role tend to come from private childcare or household management backgrounds — and the strongest ones bring genuine capability in both, not a compromise between them.
Common Questions About Hiring a House Manager
The Discovery Call is the right place to start a conversation about your household.