Structural Engineer

Rockstar is recruiting for a venture-backed proptech company that is transforming how homeowners unlock the value of their biggest asset. They connect renovation with financing and selling to create new ways to buy, sell, and unlock value, giving homeowners real control. They move fast, challenge broken systems, and hold a high bar for clarity and outcomes. This is an opportunity to work on problems that matter and see your work translate into real-world change.

Why This Role Exists

They're scaling their ground-up development business, and structural engineering is critical to how fast, efficiently, and profitably they execute. With a growing pipeline of complex residential and multifamily projects across California, they need an in-house Structural Engineer who takes ownership from feasibility through construction, works shoulder to shoulder with architects, project managers, and builders, and makes smart engineering decisions that balance structural integrity, cost, and constructability.

This role isn't just about calculations and stamped drawings. It's about identifying problems before they become expensive, challenging conventional approaches, reducing unnecessary costs, and keeping projects moving. The work will directly impact project feasibility, construction timelines, profitability, and the company's ability to scale. They are looking for someone who thinks like a builder, operates with urgency, and takes pride in turning complex designs into real projects.

What You Will Do

• Own structural engineering across ground-up residential and applicable mixed-use projects, from initial feasibility through permitting and construction support.
• Develop structural designs, calculations, drawings, and construction documents for wood-frame, podium, concrete, and other applicable structural systems.
• Independently sign and stamp structural engineering work within your California licensure and professional authority.
• Work directly with in-house architects, project managers, development team, and construction crews to drive projects forward.
• Participate early in massing, site planning, and feasibility studies to identify structural constraints, evaluate development potential, and ensure projects make financial sense before detailed design begins.
• Engineer for constructability and cost efficiency. Evaluate framing systems, foundations, materials, and structural approaches that reduce unnecessary cost and complexity without compromising safety or performance.
• Solve challenging engineering problems involving hillside construction, retaining walls, seismic requirements, subterranean parking, coastal conditions, and complex site constraints.
• Coordinate with architectural, civil, geotechnical, and other engineering disciplines to eliminate conflicts and prevent downstream construction issues.
• Own structural responses to plan check comments, RFIs, field conditions, and construction-related challenges.
• Work closely with construction teams to ensure designs translate into practical, executable building solutions.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously, maintain momentum, and deliver accurate, complete work against committed timelines.
• Identify problems before they become delays. Communicate risks early, recommend solutions, and take responsibility for moving things forward.
• Help establish engineering standards, repeatable structural solutions, and efficient processes that allow the ground-up development division to scale.
• Challenge outdated practices, improve how the team works, and continuously look for smarter, faster, and more cost-effective ways to execute.

Who You Are

• You're an owner, not an order taker. You take responsibility for outcomes, not just assigned tasks. You don't need someone following up with you to get things done. You see problems through to resolution.
• You're a builder at heart. You care about what happens beyond the drawings. You understand how engineering decisions affect budgets, schedules, constructability, and the people doing the work in the field.
• You're wicked smart and resourceful. You can break down complex structural problems, challenge assumptions, and develop practical solutions. You don't get stuck waiting for someone else to figure things out.
• You move with urgency. You know the difference between being busy and making progress. You make decisions, prioritize intelligently, and keep projects moving without compromising engineering integrity.
• You're commercially minded. You understand that great engineering isn't about designing the most complicated solution. It's about delivering the right solution that is safe, efficient, buildable, and financially responsible.
• You have a high bar for excellence. You're meticulous where it matters, hold yourself accountable, and don't accept sloppy work. Your standards show up in the quality of what you deliver.
• You're comfortable being uncomfortable. Complex projects, competing priorities, changing conditions, and aggressive timelines don't intimidate you. You stay focused, adapt, and execute.
• You challenge the status quo. You question inefficient processes and outdated thinking. You bring ideas, push for better solutions, and aren't afraid to respectfully challenge decisions.
• You're direct and transparent. You communicate clearly, raise concerns early, and don't hide behind excuses. You know how to disagree constructively and align around the best outcome.
• You thrive with autonomy. You don't need micromanagement, but you understand that independence comes with accountability. You know when to make decisions, when to collaborate, and when to escalate.
• You're a team-first operator. You work shoulder to shoulder with architects, project managers, and builders. You check your ego at the door and care more about getting the project right than getting credit.
• You have grit. You don't fold when things get difficult. You stay engaged, solve problems, and finish what you start.

Qualifications

• Active California Professional Engineer (PE) or Structural Engineer (SE) license, with the authority to sign and stamp structural drawings and calculations for assigned projects.
• Minimum 3 years of professional structural engineering experience designing residential buildings, with demonstrated ability to independently own engineering deliverables.
• Strong experience designing wood-frame, podium, and concrete structural systems.
• Solid understanding of California Building Code requirements, seismic design, structural analysis, and applicable residential construction standards.
• Proven experience preparing structural calculations, permit-ready drawings, technical specifications, and construction documentation.
• Experience working on ground-up residential construction, including single-family, multifamily, townhome, or mixed-use developments.
• Strong proficiency with relevant structural analysis and design software, along with CAD/BIM coordination workflows.
• Experience collaborating directly with architects, contractors, project managers, and other engineering disciplines.
• Ability to manage multiple active projects, work independently, and deliver under demanding timelines.
• Strong understanding of construction methods, materials, cost implications, and value engineering principles.
• Experience with hillside construction, retaining walls, complex foundations, coastal projects, subterranean parking, or density bonus multifamily development is highly preferred.
• Experience responding to municipal plan checks, coordinating permit approvals, and supporting active construction projects.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, sound technical judgment, and a demonstrated track record of solving problems and delivering results.
• Ability to work in-house from the Irvine, California office.

About the Company

They're a venture-backed proptech company built on the belief that the future starts at home. While most people see renovation as a project, they built it as a path to real wealth for homeowners. By connecting renovation with financing and selling, they create new ways to buy, sell, and unlock value, giving homeowners real control over their biggest asset.

At the company, ownership is real and impact is visible. They move fast, challenge broken systems, and hold a high bar for clarity and outcomes. If you want to work on problems that matter and see your work translate into real-world change, this is where you will do your best work.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary & benefits in a high-growth, VC-backed company
• Real ownership, clear accountability, and the authority to make decisions that matter
• Direct working relationships with the founders and senior leaders on initiatives that shape how the company grows
• The opportunity to design and build in a company where craft, clarity, and outcomes are valued
• A fast-moving environment where strong work leads to more responsibility and more opportunity
• Flexibility in how and where you work, paired with high expectations for impact
• A culture that values contribution, judgment, and follow-through over titles or tenure

The company is an equal opportunity employer. They hire based on contribution, capability, and alignment with how they work.