A demolition office manager owns each job's paperwork: permits, asbestos waste records, recycling reports, lien notices and invoices. They lead the office staff, chase anything missing before a start date, and see that each finished job is billed with its backup.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, other specialty trade contractors · BLS, May 2025
Oversees administrative operations within the demolition division to ensure streamlined processes and effective documentation management. Plays a critical role in supporting billing functions, document organization, and overall office management to enhance operational efficiency.
Oversee billing processes, ensuring accuracy and timely invoicing.
Organize, file, and maintain all project, customer, and financial documentation.
Liaise with internal teams and external clients to support project needs and resolve issues.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Process and verify billing information and invoice submissions daily.
Maintain and update filing systems for current and past projects.
Coordinate communications between demolition crews, project managers, and office staff.
Assist in preparing reports and presentations for senior management.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Invoice Accuracy: 99% or higher accuracy rate per billing cycle.
Document Completion: 100% adherence to documentation deadlines.
Response Time: Resolve administrative queries within 24 hours.
Customer Satisfaction: Maintain a satisfaction rating of >4.8 stars.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration or a related field.
Minimum of 3 years’ experience in an administrative or office management role.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and billing software.
Strong organizational skills with attention to detail.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience in the demolition, construction, or home services industry.
Familiarity with regulatory and compliance requirements specific to demolition operations.
Proven track record in managing administrative tasks in fast-paced environments.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift up to 20 pounds if necessary for handling files or office equipment.
Work primarily in an office setting with occasional walkthroughs of operational sites.
Minimal exposure to noise or environmental hazards typical in demolition areas.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard full-time hours, Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
Minimal travel required between office and site locations.
Occasional overtime during peak project periods may be necessary.
On-call duties not typically required but may be requested during urgent situations.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range: $45,000 - $55,000 USD annually, based on experience.
Eligible for performance bonuses based on timely project delivery.
Comprehensive Health, Dental, and Vision insurance.
401(k) plan with company match as applicable.
Additional fringe benefits include paid time off and professional development opportunities.
10. Company Culture and Overview
Our organization fosters a culture of growth, accountability, and teamwork.
We strive to empower every employee with the resources they need to succeed and make impactful contributions.
A collaborative environment where every individual’s voice is valued and supported.
Committed to innovation and excellence within the home services and demolition industry.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
A demolition job can be finished in a week, but its permit, waste and lien papers have deadlines that stretch on long after. Tracking every one of those dates is the office manager's job.
Asbestos loads need a signed return
When regulated asbestos waste leaves a site, EPA's rule calls for a waste shipment record naming the generator, the hauler, the disposal site and the amount. If the copy signed by the disposal site isn't back within 35 days of pickup, the company contacts the hauler or the site. At 45 days, it reports in writing to the agency that runs the asbestos program. Copies stay on file at least two years. The office manager logs each record and its return date. Source: eCFR: Asbestos NESHAP waste disposal and waste shipment records (40 CFR 61.150).
A county permit with a short life
Cook County, Illinois, as one example, issues demolition permits through its environment department, one per structure. The application needs the asbestos inspection report, proof of the construction date and paid-up property taxes, and goes in 10 business days before work starts. A permit lasts up to 30 calendar days, and any revision must reach the county before it expires. The office manager tracks each permit's end date against the job schedule. Source: Cook County, Illinois (example): Demolition permitting and the Demolition Debris Diversion Ordinance.
Recycling proof is due after the job
Cook County's debris rule also has demolition jobs divert seven tenths of their debris from disposal. Residential jobs must show part of it going to reuse, though garages, sheds and fire-damaged buildings are left out of that part. Crews collect a ticket from every recycler, reuse store and landfill used. Within 45 days after the permit expires, the actual figures and tickets go into the county's portal. Keep the tickets for three years or more once the work ends. Source: Cook County, Illinois (example): Demolition permitting and the Demolition Debris Diversion Ordinance.
Taking a building down is lienable work
In Illinois, the mechanics lien law covers removing a house or other structure. Working for a general contractor, the company serves written notice of its claim on the owner and any known lender. It is due within 90 days after finishing, or after the last extra work. Send it by certified or registered mail, a tracked national carrier or in person. On a single-family home the owner lives in, a notice to the occupant is also due within 60 days after work starts. The office manager logs both dates. Source: Illinois Mechanics Lien Act, 770 ILCS 60/24: Written notice by subcontractor (example).
How much demolition office managers make
The closest BLS group for demolition office managers is First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers. First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $32.55 an hour ($67,710 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s about the same as the $69,500 median for First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers in all industries. About 5,630 of the 1,436,680 First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers in that survey work for other specialty trade contractors.
A salary, plus a bonus when projects are delivered on time, as the template lists. BLS groups office managers with all first-line supervisors of office workers, and that group's pay on this chart runs above the template. The range suits someone who handles billing and files for one yard; if the job also leads phones, dispatch and payroll, price it closer to the chart's median.
Other specialty trade contractors
$67,710$67,710 median Middle half $53,920–$85,990 10th–90th $45,470–$105,800
All industries
$69,500$69,500 median Middle half $55,950–$85,090 10th–90th $45,610–$104,710
$25k$50k$75k$100k$125k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Other specialty trade contractors
$45,470
$53,920
$67,710
$85,990
$105,800
All industries
$45,610
$55,950
$69,500
$85,090
$104,710
BLS doesn’t publish pay for demolition contractors on their own. These figures cover other specialty trade contractors, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has kept job files at a demolition, abatement or hauling company
Counts deadlines from field events, such as a load's pickup or a job's last day
Bills from the contract, change orders and tickets without guessing
Trains a permit clerk and a billing clerk to the same checklist
Gets a straight answer from a county permit desk or a landfill's billing office
Teach these on the job
Which towns want utility letters or an asbestos report before a permit
Your haulers, landfills and recyclers and their tickets
The lien notice law in every state you serve
Which clients want lien waivers with each bill
Salvage, disposal and pass-through clauses in your contracts
Most days run through county and city permit portals, ticket emails from landfills and recyclers, and a deadline log kept beside the accounting system. Ask finalists which permit portals they have used and how they kept a permit from expiring mid-job.
Demolition office manager interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Insurance certificates
A general contractor needs an insurance certificate naming them as additional insured before you can start tomorrow. What do you do?
A strong answer: Calls the agent the same day, checks the contract's coverage requirements, and tells the project manager whether it will arrive in time.
Behavioral · Building systems
Tell me about a system you built that kept permits, utility letters or insurance certificates from expiring or going missing.
A strong answer: Describes the system (a checklist per job, an expiration calendar, a shared folder), how the team used it, and a problem it caught in time.
Agency deadlines and client deadlines fail differently, so report the two kinds apart. Hold the template's numbers until the general manager has seen a quarter of your logs.
Invoice Accuracy
Invoices that went out with every pass-through fee, change order and backup ticket the contract allows, checked against the bookkeeper's list before mailing. Count each later credit or rebill as a miss, with its cause.
Document Completion
Keep one deadline log per job: permit end, waste record return, debris report and lien notice. At month-end, count the dates that passed before the paper was done, out of all dates that came due.
Response Time
Log the arrival and reply time of each request from a lead, client or permit office. Flag any that left a crew waiting at a gate or a scale.
Customer Satisfaction
Ask each client's accounts payable or project contact whether your start package, lien waivers and final bill came complete the first time, and turn the answers into a star score.
Career path
Permit clerkFills out permit applications and chases utility disconnect letters.
Office managerRuns permits, waste records, billing and the office staff.
Project managerTakes on the jobs whose files they used to keep, from bid to final bill.
How does demolition compliance show up in the office?
For the office it means deadlines: permit start and end dates, any asbestos notice and its changes, waste shipment returns, recycling reports and lien notices. The office manager doesn't decide how a site is made safe. They make sure the papers that show it are filed, complete and on time, and they flag any that aren't to the project manager.
How much does a demolition office manager make?
First-Line supervisors of office and administrative support workers who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $32.55 an hour ($67,710 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $53,920 and $85,990 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
A permit is about to run out. What should the office do?
Check the schedule first. If work won't start or finish in time, file the revision before the end date. Cook County, for one, lets a permit be revised up to six times. It can also go on hold for up to a year, often when a third party is holding the job up. No work may happen during a hold. Send the new dates in writing to the project manager and the client.
What do general contractors ask for before a demolition sub can start?
Many ask for a signed subcontract, a certificate of insurance naming them, a safety plan, and often the asbestos survey and the permit. Ask each one for its start package at award, and keep a checklist per client. That keeps a crew from being sent home over a missing form.
What exercise shows a strong demolition office manager?
Give finalists a closed job's papers and ask them to build its deadline log. It should show when the permit ends, when the signed asbestos waste record must be back, and when the debris report and lien notice are due. Then say the waste record is 40 days out with no signed copy, and ask what they send and to whom. The answer should name the hauler, the landfill and, at 45 days, the agency.
