It takes a village to keep a mansion running smoothly. Just ask Kelly Fore Dixon, who once managed the Beverly Hills home of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Dixon told reporter E.B. Solomont that she slept with her phone by her ear at night. There were four other full-time staffers at the house—a maintenance worker, two housekeepers and a gardener—plus private security and 80 subcontractors. The estate had a recording studio, home theater, pool and 30 HVAC units, said Dixon. When Allen was there, "silent and unseen was the protocol," she said. Dixon is part of a small army of staffers–property managers, housekeepers, landscapers–who are helping manage the mansions of the ultrarich. In recent years, demand for these jobs has ticked up as the number of ultrawealthy households has swelled. In 2024, there were 2.2 million individuals in North America with a net worth of $5 million, up from 1.5 million in 2020, according to global wealth intelligence firm Altrata "It becomes a business," said Jamie Gagliano, a Douglas Elliman agent who spent nine years as a chief of staff for hedge-fund executive Larry Robbins, according to her LinkedIn profile. She oversaw his homes and vehicles, including a helicopter. In general, she said, "we're talking about assets that are sometimes north of $10 million—each of them.". |