Ranch Manager / Caretaker
Hall and Hall
Big Sandy, MT
Full-time
Caretaker Jobs
1 open listing · updated Oct 28, 2026
Caretaker jobs are live-in positions keeping a property running and secure while the owners or guests are away: private ranches, ranch communities, hunting and fishing lodges and estates. The work is part maintenance, part equipment operator and part host. A ranch caretaker job posted near Yampa, Colorado in August 2026 covered buildings and roads, plowing until the seasonal road closure, a winter Mattracks shuttle for owners, home inspections, and running tractors, trucks, ATVs and snowmobiles.
More About Caretaker Jobs
These are caretaker jobs with housing by design, with a salary on top. The Yampa post paid $50,000 to $55,000 for a year-round role. A private property near Aspen advertised $65,000 to $125,000 a year combined for a caretaker and property manager team covering horses, building maintenance, grounds and household support. At the remote end, Temperance Creek Lodge in Hells Canyon, a fishing and hunting lodge with no vehicle access, posted a caretaker and cook job asking for 0 to 2 years of experience. BLS put the 2025 median for general maintenance and repair workers at $23.84 an hour, before any housing.
Couples can often apply together. A September 2026 Dunnellon, Florida ranch post asked for an individual or couple for a long-term arrangement with a private on-site apartment, and said it was not a ranch manager position. IRS Publication 15-B lets an employer leave lodging out of your wages when it is on the business premises, for the employer’s convenience and a condition of employment; a cash housing allowance does not qualify.
The Caretaker Gazette, published since 1983, lists caretaking openings for $39.95 a year online. Read ranch caretaker jobs and jobs with housing, and see how to write a job wanted post so owners can find you.
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Questions About Caretaker Jobs
How many caretaker jobs are open right now?
1 listing is live on WildWork as of October 28, 2026. 0 state their pay and 0 include housing.
Do caretaker jobs come with housing?
0% of current listings say the employer provides housing, free or at a charge, and 0% include meals. Each listing shows whether housing is included and what it costs when the employer says.
What does a ranch caretaker do?
Keeps the place running while the owners are elsewhere. The Yampa, Colorado caretaker job posted in August 2026 covered buildings, ranch roads and snowplowing, equipment repair and welding, a winter Mattracks shuttle for owners, and routine inspections of owners’ homes, using tractors, trucks, ATVs and snowmobiles. Lodge caretakers may also clean, cook for small groups and turn over guest rooms.
Is caretaker housing taxable?
Not if it passes the IRS tests. Publication 15-B lets an employer exclude lodging from your wages if it is furnished on the business premises, for the employer’s convenience, and you must accept it as a condition of employment. If you can take extra pay instead of the housing and choose the housing, it is not excluded, and a cash housing allowance never is.
How much do caretakers make a year?
Posted 2026 salaries ranged from $50,000 to $55,000 for a year-round caretaker at a ranch community near Yampa, Colorado to $65,000 to $125,000 combined for a caretaker and property manager team near Aspen. For a cash benchmark, BLS put the 2025 median for general maintenance and repair workers at $49,590 a year, or $23.84 an hour.
Can a couple apply for a caretaker job together?
Often, yes. A 2026 Aspen-area listing sought a caretaker and property manager team, a Dunnellon, Florida ranch asked applicants to say whether they were applying individually or as a couple, and Temperance Creek Lodge in Hells Canyon sought a couple or an individual, though it said it could not accommodate families with children.
Can you get a caretaker job with little experience?
Some, but most want a track record. Temperance Creek Lodge’s 2026 caretaker and cook post listed 0 to 2 years of experience, while the Yampa and Dunnellon posts asked for 2 to 5 years. The Aspen listing said it would not consider applications without relevant work experience in horses, maintenance, grounds and household support.
Sources: RanchWork.com, Caretaker needed at private mountain ranch community in northwest Colorado (posted Aug 15, 2026); RanchWork.com, Experienced ranch caretaker and property manager team needed near Aspen, Colorado (posted Feb 4, 2026); RanchWork.com, Individual or couple needed for caretaker and cook position at remote lodge in Hells Canyon (posted Mar 8, 2026); RanchWork.com, Live-in ranch caretaker needed in Florida (posted Sep 2, 2026); IRS Publication 15-B (2026), Employer's Tax Guide to Fringe Benefits; O*NET OnLine, 49-9071 Maintenance and Repair Workers, General (BLS 2025 wage data); The Caretaker Gazette; CoolWorks, The Best Time to Apply.