Real Estate Senior Counsel

JOB MISSION

Pacific Lifestyle Homes is seeking a Real Estate Senior Counsel to serve as a key advisor to leadership, land acquisition, and development teams. This role is responsible for structuring, drafting, reviewing, and negotiating a wide range of real estate and operational agreements while proactively managing legal risk and supporting business objectives. This highly collaborative position requires both strong technical legal expertise and practical business judgment and reports directly to the Director of Land Acquisition and Development.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

• Real Estate Transactions:

  • Draft, review, and negotiate:
    • Purchase and Sale Agreements (PSAs)
    • Lets of Intent (LOIs)
    • Option Agreements, Joint Venture Agreements, and Land Banking Agreements
  • Provide legal support throughout the land acquisition and disposition process
  • Conduct title and due diligence review in coordination with internal and external partners
  • Identify and mitigate legal risks in real estate transactions

• Development & Community Governance:

  • Draft and review:
    • Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions (CC&Rs)
    • Declarations and governing documents
    • Easements, development agreements, and plat-related documents
  • Partner with development teams to ensure compliance with local regulations and entitlements
  • Advise on HOA structures and governance matters

• Contract Review & Risk Management:

  • Review, draft, and negotiate third-party contracts, including:
    • Vendor and service agreements
    • Construction-related agreements
    • Consulting and professional services contracts
  • Establish and maintain contract standards and templates
  • Ensure consistency in risk allocation and protection of company interests

• Legal Advisory & Compliance:

  • Provide day-to-day legal guidance to internal stakeholders
  • Interpret and advise on applicable laws, land use, regulations, and compliance requirements
  • Coordinate with outside counsel as needed while managing cost and efficiency
  • Support dispute resolution and pre-litigation strategy when necessary

QUALIFICATIONS

• Education & Experience

  • Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school
  • Active license to practice law in Oregon and Washington (Idaho/Boise preferred)
  • 10-30+ years of experience in real estate and/or land use transactional law, actively practicing
  • Experience with residential development and/or homebuilding

• Skills & Competencies

  • Strong drafting and negotiation skills with attention to detail
  • Ability to translate legal risk into practical business guidance
  • Proactive, solution-oriented mindset
  • High level of integrity and sound judgment
  • Strong communication skills with both legal and non-legal stakeholders
  • Ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-paced environment

BENEFITS

• Company supported medical, dental and vision benefits for employees and families
• Participation in our 401(k)-retirement savings plan with Company contributions
• New home discount
• 120 hours of paid time off for the first year
• Seven paid holidays
• Paid volunteer hours
• Employee Recognition Program
• Employee Referral Bonus - Up to $1,000
• Engaging company culture – Including our annual “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”
• And much more!

OUR CULTURE / VALUES

At Pacific Lifestyle Homes, our vibrant culture defines who we are. We believe in the power of open communication, where every voice is valued and heard. With a strong emphasis on personal growth, we offer one-on-one coaching, regular reviews, and prioritize internal promotion whenever feasible. Our actions are guided by our core values of respect, accountability, candor, humility, integrity, and teamwork, shaping every decision we make and every interaction we have.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

We are an in-person culture with a general work schedule of 8:00am – 5:00pm. Our dress code and appearance policy reflect our commitment to professionalism and our dedication to maintaining a premier standard as a homebuilder. Prior managerial reference checks, background check and a pre-employment drug screen are required steps in our hiring process. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer.