New York is the largest family office market in the United States. More single and multi-family offices are headquartered in Manhattan than any other city, and the concentration of UHNW principals across the tri-state area creates one of the deepest and most competitive talent markets in the world. It is also one of the most expensive. Compensation premiums in New York run 40% above the national baseline for most senior roles.
Talent Gurus runs family office staffing, executive search, and private household recruitment for UHNW principals and private estates across New York City, Manhattan, the Hamptons, and the broader tri-state area. We place senior family office staff in NYC including CIOs, CFOs, Chiefs of Staff, estate managers, heads of security, and private chefs.
The New York Market: What the Data Shows
New York carries a 1.40x regional multiplier. Senior compensation benchmarks for this market:
Family Office CIO
P25: $560,000 · P50: $805,000 · P75: $1,190,000 · P90: $1,607,000
Scarcity: 9.5 out of 10. Pool: 16 to 46 nationally. Time to fill: 26 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 57%. Signing bonus in 65% of placements, $80,000 to $175,000. Bonus runs 25 to 35% of base plus carried interest. Additional incentive compensation runs $850,000 to $2 million or more at $1B+ AUM offices. Co-investment rights increasingly standard. New York is the densest CIO market alongside Greenwich and Palm Beach. Garden leave: 3 to 6 months.
Family Office CEO
P25: $595,000 · P50: $805,000 · P75: $1,190,000 · P90: $1,607,000
Scarcity: 9 out of 10. Pool: 15 to 30 nationally. Time to fill: 12 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 48%. Offer acceptance: 52%, the lowest of any family office role. Signing bonus in 70% of placements, $100,000 to $200,000. Bonus runs 20 to 30% discretionary. Total comp median: $1.1 million. Family member CEOs earn significantly less ($256,000 versus $435,000 for non-family professionals at smaller offices). Competition from multi-family offices intensifying in Manhattan. Garden leave: 6 to 12 months. Experience: 14 to 21 years typical.
Family Office CFO
P25: $350,000 · P50: $462,000 · P75: $630,000 · P90: $851,000
Scarcity: 8 out of 10. Pool: 50 to 96 nationally. Time to fill: 19 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 52%. Signing bonus in 60% of placements, $60,000 to $130,000. Bonus runs 18 to 25% discretionary. Total comp median: $620,000. CPA strongly preferred. Multi-entity consolidation and tax strategy increasingly falling to CFO at offices without a dedicated Director of Tax. NYC and Greenwich corridor is the primary talent market for this role.
Chief of Staff (Family Office)
P25: $245,000 · P50: $364,000 · P75: $483,000 · P90: $652,000
Scarcity: 8.5 out of 10. Pool: 12 to 40 nationally. Time to fill: 22 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 40%. Signing bonus in 40% of placements, $15,000 to $40,000. Bonus runs 20 to 30% discretionary. Average time to fill: 22 weeks. New York and San Francisco carry a 30 to 40% premium above baseline. This is often the first senior hire in a newly formed office. First-year attrition: 15%. Key risk: scope versus authority mismatch.
Estate Director / Estate Manager
P25: $203,000 · P50: $259,000 · P75: $364,000 · P90: $473,000
Scarcity: 7 out of 10. Pool: 26 to 50 nationally. Time to fill: 23 weeks, the longest of any household role. Counter-offer rate: 26%, the lowest of any role, meaning candidates who decide to leave do not look back. Signing bonus in 40% of placements, $15,000 to $35,000. Bonus runs 10 to 15% performance-based. Housing typically included on or near estate, valued at $25,000 to $40,000. First-year attrition: 20%. Hamptons seasonal assignments command $8,000 to $15,000 per month. Multi-property estate managers (Manhattan plus Hamptons) command P90 of $520,000 nationally.
Head of Security
P25: $182,000 · P50: $245,000 · P75: $350,000 · P90: $448,000
Scarcity: 7.5 out of 10. Pool: 85 to 200 nationally. Time to fill: 14 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 31%. Signing bonus in 45% of placements, $20,000 to $50,000. Bonus runs 15 to 25% performance-based. CPP certification from ASIS International commands a 10% premium. Background check minimum: 6 weeks. New York drives the most volume for corporate-to-UHNW crossover hires. DC market feeds the NYC pipeline with federal law enforcement and intelligence community backgrounds. Manhattan residential details require unique access and discretion protocols versus suburban estate operations. Garden leave: 3 months typical.
Executive Personal Assistant
P25: $140,000 · P50: $210,000 · P75: $329,000 · P90: $428,000
Scarcity: 7.5 out of 10. Pool: 34 to 77 nationally. Time to fill: 21 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 32%. Signing bonus in 30% of placements, $8,000 to $20,000. Bonus runs 10 to 20% discretionary. Demand up 25 to 30% since 2022. Salary growth rate: 9%, the fastest of any household role. 24/7 availability is the norm, not the exception. First-year attrition: 20%. Hamptons summer surge creates seasonal demand spike May through September.
Private Chef (Resident)
P25: $140,000 · P50: $210,000 · P75: $329,000 · P90: $428,000
Scarcity: 6.5 out of 10. Pool: 37 to 118 nationally. Time to fill: 21 weeks. Counter-offer rate: 31%. Signing bonus in 40% of placements, $10,000 to $30,000. Bonus runs 12 to 18% plus holiday bonuses. Top chefs in UHNW Manhattan households can exceed $400,000. Specialized diets (functional medicine, anti-inflammatory, kosher, halal) command a premium. Demand and compensation up 15 to 20% since 2022. Hamptons seasonal surge May through September with day-rate premiums. Traveling chefs for families splitting time between Manhattan, Hamptons, Palm Beach, and Aspen run $196,000 to $564,000 at the New York multiplier. Housing often included for live-in roles, valued at $25,000 to $40,000. First-year attrition: 18%.
House Manager
P25: $130,000 · P50: $189,000 · P75: $245,000 · P90: $319,000
Scarcity: 6 out of 10. Pool: 191 to 417 nationally. Time to fill: 9 weeks, the fastest of any role on this page. Counter-offer rate: 33%. Signing bonus in 30% of placements, $10,000 to $25,000. Bonus runs 8 to 12% annual. Housing often included, valued at $20,000 to $35,000. First-year attrition: 22%, the highest among household leadership roles. Top departure reasons: boundary erosion, principal micromanagement, and staff turnover cascades. Manhattan roles skew higher than outer boroughs due to cost of living and 24/7 availability expectations. Hamptons dual-property managers (splitting Manhattan and Hamptons) command the top of the range.
For US national baseline benchmarks, see the Family Office Compensation Guide. For full household staff salary data, see the Household Staff Salary Guide. For executive protection benchmarks across 9 security roles, see the Executive Protection Salary Guide.
Roles We Place in New York
Family office investment and operations: CIO, CFO, CEO, Chief of Staff, Director of Tax, Controller, Investment Analyst, Head of Compliance.
Private household and estate: Estate Director, Estate Manager, House Manager, Executive Personal Assistant, Head of Security, Executive Protection, Private Chef, Butler, Head of Household.
We also staff complete household teams for new acquisitions and principal relocations into the New York market.
What Makes New York Searches Different
The talent pool in New York is deep but heavily competed for. Every major family office, hedge fund, private equity firm, and investment bank is recruiting from the same senior talent pool simultaneously. A Family Office CIO candidate in Manhattan is receiving approaches from multiple firms at any given time.
Counter-offer rates in New York are among the highest in the country. Estate Managers and household staff in Manhattan and the Hamptons are in consistent demand. A strong candidate placed at P50 in this market will be counter-offered within weeks of handing in notice.
The Hamptons market operates on a separate seasonal rhythm. Household staff placements for summer residences typically need to be initiated by January for a Memorial Day start. Missing this window means competing for a significantly thinner pool.
All figures are senior experience level, base salary only. Bonus, housing, and benefits are additional.
New York Submarkets
Manhattan is the primary family office market. The highest concentration sits between Midtown and the Upper East Side, with significant presence in Tribeca and Hudson Yards. Compensation runs at the full 1.40x multiplier.
The Hamptons operate on a seasonal staffing model. Estate managers, private chefs, and household staff for summer residences need to be placed by Memorial Day, with searches typically initiated in January. Year-round Hamptons estates run at 1.35x the national baseline.
Westchester and the Hudson Valley serve multigenerational estates with year-round staffing needs. Bedford, Katonah, and the surrounding areas carry a 1.20x multiplier with lower turnover than Manhattan due to estate-based housing.
Brooklyn Heights and DUMBO have a small but growing family office presence, particularly among tech-wealth principals who relocated from San Francisco. Compensation premiums are slightly below Manhattan at 1.25x.
For full US national compensation benchmarks, see the Family Office Compensation Guide. For household staff salary data, see the Household Staff Salary Guide.
