A demolition project manager runs each teardown and strip-out contract, from the hazardous materials survey to the last disposal ticket. Before crews arrive, they line up permits, utility cutoffs, abatement and the removal of other regulated items. Then they track tons hauled, cost and dates, and report to the client each week.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, other specialty trade contractors · BLS, May 2025
Annual pay: 10th percentile $63,260, middle half $81,940 to $132,710, 90th percentile $170,780. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Reports to
Operations Manager
Department
Operations
Schedule
Weekdays, office and sites, some on-call · Office and job sites in business hours, longer days when a job demands it, and on call for urgent site issues
Responsible for overseeing major demolition projects from planning through completion, ensuring strict adherence to all regulations, timelines, and quality standards.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee and manage comprehensive demolition projects from initiation to completion.
Ensure compliance with local, state, and federal regulations throughout all project phases.
Monitor and maintain project timelines, budgets, and resource allocation to meet established goals.
Coordinate with subcontractors, internal teams, and regulatory bodies to streamline project activities.
Troubleshoot operational issues and implement timely corrective measures.
Maintain detailed project documentation and provide regular progress reports.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Review daily project schedules and status updates to ensure alignment with planned milestones.
Conduct on-site inspections to verify safety, quality, and regulatory compliance.
Communicate with subcontractors and regulatory agencies to resolve issues promptly.
Facilitate stakeholder meetings to discuss project progress and address concerns.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Project Completion Rate: Achieve a 95% on-time project completion rate.
Regulatory Compliance: Maintain a 100% adherence rate to safety and legal standards.
Customer Satisfaction Rating: Exceed a 4.8-star rating in client feedback.
Budget Efficiency: Keep project cost variance within 5% of the approved budget.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Engineering, or a related field.
5+ years of experience in project management, preferably in demolition or construction environments.
Proficiency in project management software and scheduling tools.
Excellent leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience managing large-scale demolition projects from start to finish.
Familiarity with local, state, and federal demolition regulations.
Prior exposure to the home services or construction industry.
Proven track record of successful project delivery and effective stakeholder engagement.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift up to 50 pounds occasionally.
Regular site visits requiring navigation of varying weather conditions.
Comfortable working in dynamic and sometimes confined construction environments.
Capable of performing physical tasks associated with on-site project management.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard business hours with occasional extended hours based on project demands.
Regular on-site visits and occasional travel between project locations.
On-call availability to handle urgent project issues.
A collaborative work setting that combines both fieldwork and office-based responsibilities.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Annual salary ranging from $80,000 to $100,000 USD, based on experience.
Comprehensive Health, Dental, and Vision insurance coverage.
401(k) plan with company match to support long-term financial goals.
Paid time off and opportunities for professional development.
10. Company Culture and Overview
Dynamic company dedicated to innovation and continuous improvement.
Inclusive culture that values teamwork, professional growth, and mutual respect.
Committed to delivering exceptional customer service while maintaining high-quality standards.
Offers a supportive environment where employees are encouraged to expand their skills and succeed.
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
What a demolition PM gets out of the building first
Asbestos gets the attention, but old buildings hold other things with their own federal rules. The project manager finds them in the survey, puts each one in someone's scope, and keeps the paper that proves it left the right way.
Refrigerant comes out before the scrap goes
Central air systems, a store's cold cases and chillers are usually taken apart on site. EPA requires their refrigerant to be recovered first, under its service rules, by a technician with EPA's Section 608 card. Window units and household refrigerators can go to the scrap yard whole. If their refrigerant was already removed, the yard must keep a signed statement from whoever drops them off, naming who recovered it, their address and the date. The PM puts recovery in a sub's scope or the owner's, and keeps copies. Source: EPA: Stationary refrigeration safe disposal requirements.
Old caulk and light ballasts may hold PCBs
EPA believes products made with PCBs were widely used in buildings built or remodeled from about 1950 through 1979. EPA's fact sheet lists caulk and paint among them. If testing finds one at or above 50 parts per million, it must be removed and disposed of as PCB bulk product waste. Old magnetic T12 fluorescent ballasts may hold PCBs too, and a leaking one has its own cleanup and disposal rules. The PM asks whether the owner tested, and writes who removes what into the scope. Source: EPA: Determining the presence of manufactured PCB products in buildings.
Glowing exit signs can't go in the dumpster
Exit signs that glow with no wiring or batteries often hold tritium, a radioactive gas. NRC says they must not be thrown out as normal trash. The business using them hands them to a licensed party, such as the maker, a waste broker or a disposal site. It then reports that to NRC or its state agency within 30 days. A sign broken by a machine can contaminate the area around it. The PM has the client pull and ship them before the strip-out starts. Source: NRC: Backgrounder on tritium exit signs.
The abatement contractor hands over the building
When asbestos removal is hired out, its finish date sets your start. Before crews move in, the PM walks the building with the abatement contractor's supervisor and gets a written list of what was removed and anything left in place. The lead gets that list along with the survey. If the crew uncovers a suspect material nobody sampled, work stops in that area. The PM calls the abatement contractor and the consultant back before it restarts.
How much demolition project managers make
The closest BLS group for demolition project managers is construction managers. Construction managers who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $103,680 a year ($49.85 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s below the $114,990 median for construction managers in all industries. About 21,060 of the 380,360 construction managers in that survey work for other specialty trade contractors.
Salaried, with a performance bonus, paid time off and training in the template. The range starts just under where this chart's bottom quarter ends and stops a little short of the median. Figure any bonus after the last disposal ticket and scrap check have posted, since both can move a demolition job's margin late.
Other specialty trade contractors
$103,680$103,680 median Middle half $81,940–$132,710 10th–90th $63,260–$170,780
All industries
$114,990$114,990 median Middle half $88,550–$151,640 10th–90th $69,690–$189,440
$50k$75k$100k$125k$150k$175k$200k$225k
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
$63,260
$81,940
$103,680
$132,710
$170,780
All industries
$69,690
$88,550
$114,990
$151,640
$189,440
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 run demolition, abatement or gut renovation jobs with outside subs and agency deadlines
Reads a hazardous materials survey and turns it into a scope and an order of work
Builds a schedule for short jobs around utility cutoffs, notices and the client's dates
Checks hauled tons and crew hours against the bid each week
Sends a change notice with photos the same day a hidden condition turns up
Teach these on the job
Your estimating software and cost codes
Each general contractor's subcontract forms and pay application steps
Each town's demolition permit steps
Disposal rules for refrigerant, PCB items and tritium signs
Your hazardous materials consultants and abatement partners
Most PMs here work in an estimating and job cost system, a scheduling tool, and a shared job file holding the survey, permits, notices and disposal receipts. Scale and dump tickets usually come in each day as photos from the crews.
Demolition project 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 · Positive asbestos results
The asbestos survey comes back positive for floor tile and pipe wrap two days before demolition. What do you do?
A strong answer: Holds the affected work, books a licensed abatement contractor, makes sure any required asbestos notice is filed, gives the customer a change order for cost and time, and starts demolition only after clearance.
Behavioral · Neighbor relations
Tell me about a time you handled a neighbor or community complaint during a project.
A strong answer: Responded quickly, listened, made a specific change, and kept them informed.
Set these after a few months of closed jobs. Score gut-outs inside buildings apart from full teardowns. Their schedules and budgets behave differently.
Project Completion Rate
Jobs turned over by the contract date, from the closeout file. For each late one, note what caused the slip and whether the client got a written warning and a new date before the old one passed.
Regulatory Compliance
Jobs where every required notice, permit, disposal record and transfer receipt was in the file before closeout, plus any agency letter or citation tied to the PM's jobs.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Closeout ratings from the client, read beside two facts from the file: change orders they disputed and days the next trade waited on demolition.
Budget Efficiency
Compare each closed job's margin with the bid's. Look for repeat misses in tons hauled, since a light weight guess throws off trucks, dump fees and crew days.
Career path
Field supervisorLearns jobs from the field side: crews, sequence and site problems.
Project managerOwns each job's subs, removals, budget and closeout paperwork.
Operations managerDecides which job gets the crew and the machine when two want them.
General managerAnswers for a whole region's sales and results.
What hidden conditions lead to demolition change orders?
Mostly things nobody could see on the bid walk: a second slab under the first, old footings from an earlier building, a basement filled with rubble, extra layers of roofing or flooring, or a buried tank. The PM photographs each one where it sits. Written notice goes out under the subcontract's notice clause before the extra work starts. Price it once its size is known, but never skip the notice.
How much does a demolition project manager make?
Construction managers who work for other specialty trade contractors earned a median of $103,680 a year ($49.85 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $81,940 and $132,710 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
What goes in a demolition PM's weekly report?
Areas cleared against the plan, and loads and tons hauled by material against the estimate, with recycling tickets where the client or the town tracks them. List hidden conditions found and the change notices sent for each. Then flag next week's moves that need someone else, such as a street closure, a utility cutoff, a crane day or the abatement contractor's last day. Keep the same short format every week, so a slipping item stands out.
What do general contractors judge a demolition PM on?
Mostly whether the next trade could start on time. A general contractor remembers a slab left clean and ready on the agreed date. They remember change orders that came with photos before the work, and tickets and lien waivers that showed up without a chase. They also remember damage to anything meant to stay. Ask your best clients what they track, and score your PMs on that.
Which hiring exercise works for a demolition PM?
Hand finalists a survey for a late-1960s office building that lists asbestos floor tile, T12 light fixtures, two rooftop units and glowing exit signs, plus a client's start date three weeks out. Ask for the order of steps, who does each one, and what paper comes back. Strong candidates work backward from the start date and name the records before they talk about crews.
