Description:
Job Title: Resident Services Custodian
Reports To: Facilities Manager | Dotted-Line Oversight: Health and Social Services Team
FLSA Status: Non-Exempt
Assignment Category – Regular, full-time
Department: Facilities
Hours per day: 8 hours
Job Purpose
The Resident Services Custodian supports residents in Serving Seniors’ supportive housing communities by helping maintain clean, safe, and healthy living environments. This position provides routine and as-needed custodial support in resident units and common areas while also helping residents develop and maintain housekeeping routines that promote independence and successful tenancy. The role is intended to support resident independence and housing stability, not replace routine household responsibilities that residents are capable of completing on their own.
Working under the supervision of Facilities and with dotted-line guidance from the Health and Social Services Team, the Resident Services Custodian serves older adults who may be transitioning from homelessness or living with challenges related to aging, trauma, behavioral health conditions, hoarding behaviors, cognitive impairment, substance use, physical disabilities, frailty, or other barriers that affect their ability or willingness to maintain a safe living environment. Using a trauma-informed, resident-centered approach, the position works with residents and staff to address environmental concerns while preserving resident dignity, choice, and self-determination.
Who We Are
Established in 1970, Serving Seniors helps San Diego County’s low-income seniors overcome poverty through whole-person, wraparound support including meals, housing, health and social services, and enrichment activities. We work at numerous sites across the county and in the homes of hundreds of homebound seniors. Our flagship Gary & Mary West Senior Wellness Center in downtown San Diego is unlike any other senior center in the nation. Bringing together a range of supportive services under one roof, the Senior Wellness Center operates 365 days a year and offers two floors of integrated care, including health and social services, housing navigation, enrichment activities, lifelong learning, a Cyber Café and linkage to over 25 onsite direct service partners, including a senior dental center. Last fiscal year, we provided over 1.5 million meals and coordinated services to over 13,265 older adults.
Our Mission: Helping seniors in poverty live healthy and fulfilling lives.
Our Vision: All seniors, regardless of income, are able to thrive, engage in their communities, lead purposeful lives, and have a place they call home.
Our Core Values:
Advocacy - Acknowledging and supporting the needs of older adults at the individual, community, and policy-level.
Person-Centered - Seeing the whole person, providing coordinated support, and treating all with dignity and respect.
Integrity – Representing the values of honesty, trust, and transparency within our community.
Compassion & Empathy – Approaching our work with a heartfelt desire to better understand and serve.
Impact – Measuring and evaluating programs to ensure that for every dollar invested, there is a positive impact in the lives of those we serve.
Intentional Involvement – Promoting an environment that nurtures differences and allows individuals to be their entire, authentic selves.
Top Workplace Award Recipient
Serving Seniors has received the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Top Workplaces Award nine out of the ten years the awards program has taken place, and most recently for six years in a row from 2019-2025.
Requirements:
Responsibilities
- Perform routine and as-needed custodial support in resident units and common areas, including cleaning, sanitation, light organization, and related housekeeping tasks.
- Provide support in a way that reinforces resident independence. Duties are not intended to replace routine household responsibilities that residents are capable of completing independently; instead, the role helps residents learn, practice, and maintain housekeeping routines while providing additional support when residents are too frail or otherwise unable to complete tasks safely on their own.
- Provide hands-on coaching and encouragement to help residents maintain clean, safe, and functional living spaces.
- Support resident skill-building related to housekeeping routines, organization, sanitation, and healthy living practices.
- Approach all resident interactions with professionalism, patience, respect, and appropriate boundaries.
- Document services, resident contacts, environmental concerns, and follow-up needs accurately and in a timely manner.
- Share relevant updates with supervisors and supportive services staff regarding resident engagement, unit conditions, safety concerns, or additional service needs.
- Collaborate with case managers, housing staff, facilities, and other team members to support coordinated, resident-centered services.
- Work collaboratively with the Health and Social Services Team to address environmental concerns that may affect resident health, safety, or housing stability, including hoarding, excessive clutter, sanitation concerns, resistance to cleaning, pest activity, and other barriers to maintaining a safe living environment.
- Follow HSS guidance and agreed-upon resident service plans when behavioral, trauma-related, cognitive, or other personal factors affect the custodial approach or resident engagement.
- Participate in case conferences, multidisciplinary discussions, or coordinated interventions when unit conditions create risks to resident well-being or tenancy.
- Help residents transitioning from homelessness establish practical housekeeping routines, safe apartment practices, and community living expectations.
- Observe and promptly communicate concerns such as self-neglect, changes in functioning, mobility limitations, escalating clutter, or other conditions requiring follow-up by HSS, Facilities, property management, or housing staff.
- Support preparation and follow-up activities related to pest treatment, including bed bugs and cockroaches, in accordance with agency safety procedures and pest management protocols.
Education and Experience
- High school diploma or GED required.
- At least one year of work experience demonstrating reliability, professionalism, and the ability to follow established procedures.
- Experience in custodial services, housekeeping, environmental services, residential support, hospitality, healthcare, supportive housing, or a related setting preferred.
- Experience working with older adults, individuals who have experienced homelessness, or people living with behavioral health conditions, disabilities, or substance use challenges preferred.
- Valid California Driver’s License required.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
- Knowledge of basic custodial practices, sanitation standards, and safe use of cleaning products, chemicals, and equipment.
- Ability to support residents with housekeeping and independent living routines in a way that preserves choice, dignity, and self-determination.
- Clear, respectful communication skills and the ability to build appropriate working relationships with residents and staff.
- Ability to identify and report safety, maintenance, sanitation, pest control, and resident wellness concerns.
- Strong organization, follow-through, documentation, and time management skills.
- Ability to adapt to changing priorities while maintaining a calm, professional, and service-oriented approach.
- Commitment to trauma-informed, person-centered services that reflect Serving Seniors’ values of compassion, dignity, respect, and connection.
- Ability to work effectively and respectfully with older adults, including individuals who have experienced homelessness, trauma, behavioral health conditions, cognitive impairment, substance use, physical disabilities, frailty, or hoarding behaviors.
- Ability to use trauma-informed, harm-reduction, and resident-centered engagement approaches when residents are reluctant to accept assistance or when behavioral concerns affect the work.
- Ability to balance hands-on custodial assistance with the goal of building resident independence and preserving dignity, choice, and self-determination.
- Ability to remain calm, maintain professional boundaries, and seek guidance from HSS staff when resident behavior, unit conditions, or safety concerns require a coordinated response.
Working Conditions
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand, walk, sit, use hands to handle objects or equipment, reach with hands and arms, and communicate with residents and staff. The employee may be required to bend, stoop, kneel, crouch, climb stairs, and move throughout occupied resident units, common areas, offices, and supportive housing buildings. The employee must frequently lift, push, pull, or carry up to 30 pounds and may assist with light moving, organizing, and custodial tasks. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.
The employee will work in residential environments that may include clutter, strong odors, unsanitary conditions, and active or suspected pest infestations, including cockroaches and bed bugs. Exposure to cleaning products, chemicals, dust, dirt, and other sanitation concerns is expected. The employee must use required personal protective equipment, follow established safety and pest management procedures, and promptly report conditions that cannot be addressed safely within the scope of the position. The employee may also interact with residents experiencing behavioral health, trauma-related, cognitive, substance use, or other challenges and must remain calm, professional, respectful, and responsive to guidance from the Health and Social Services Team.
Why our current employees enjoy working for us:
-
We offer a comprehensive benefits package. Serving Seniors pays 100% of employees medical & dental coverage. (For employees who qualify for benefits)
-
We offer paid holidays and paid time off to all employees
-
We offer a floating holiday to all employees
-
We offer up to a 3% match on 403(b) retirement plans, to all employees
-
We’ve been voted a best place to work for over five years in San Diego
-
We are a stable company with over 50 years of experience
-
We have served thousands of older adults throughout San Diego County making a positive impact and providing a higher quality of life to these individuals
Pay : 72k - 78k salary DOE
This employer is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action and E-Verify employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex including sexual orientation and gender identity, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.
