Data Scientist - Atlanta, GA

At Cortland, we operate with a forward-thinking approach that challenges conventional norms and actively seeks insights beyond traditional industry boundaries. As a recognized leader in the multifamily sector, our focus on performance, innovation, and disciplined execution continues to drive strong growth and market leadership. We are committed to building a best-in-class organization by empowering top talent with the resources, autonomy, and support needed to deliver results and advance their careers in a high-performance environment.

Role Overview

As a Data Scientist, you’ll design and deploy advanced analytics and machine learning solutions that address critical investment and operational challenges. Your work will transform complex data into scalable, production‑ready insights that drive smarter decisions and accelerate Cortland’s growth.

• Partner with business stakeholders to identify, prioritize, and deliver high‑value predictive and optimization use cases.
• Design, build, and maintain machine learning and statistical models that support ongoing operational and investment strategies.
• Collaborate with data and engineering teams to establish the infrastructure, pipelines, and processes required for production analytics.
• Develop end‑to‑end solutions, including model development, deployment, monitoring, and continuous improvement.
• Leverage BI, GIS, and visualization tools to clearly communicate insights to technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Serve as the technical lead for AI/agentic initiatives while educating the broader teams to effectively adopt.
• Stay current on emerging data science tools, platforms, and methodologies, bringing relevant innovations into the organization.

Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM‑related field (e.g., statistics, applied math, computer science, engineering, business analytics) required; Advanced degree preferred.
• 2+ years of professional experience applying data science or advanced analytics in a business environment
• Strong foundation in statistical modeling, machine learning, clustering, classification, recommendation systems, and optimization techniques
• Proficiency in Python and SQL; experience with Spark, Scala, or similar tools is a plus
• Working knowledge of cloud platforms and data ecosystems (AWS or Azure), including tools such as Databricks, EMR, RDS, and S3
• Experience working with large, complex datasets and resolving performance or memory constraints
• Solid business intuition with the ability to explain analytical approaches, tradeoffs, and outcomes clearly
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to present insights visually and tell a compelling data‑driven story

About Cortland

Founded in 2005, Cortland is an international, vertically integrated multifamily real estate investment, development, and management firm with a resident-centric approach to living experiences. Recognized as one of the top 10 multifamily owners and operators in the US, Cortland combines in-house design, construction, and operations to deliver value and innovation across its portfolio.

Join us as we reimagine apartment living and drive outsized returns through purpose, performance, and people.

Cortland is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud to support and celebrate diversity in the workplace. We are committed to equal consideration for all qualified applicants regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. If you have a disability and need an accommodation or assistance with the application process and/or using our website, please email Careers@cortland.com

Cortland is a drug-free workplace.

Cortland participates in e-verify to verify the employment status of all persons hired to work in the United States.

California Applicant Privacy Notice
We collect personal information from all job applicants, including identifiers (e.g., name, contact details), professional or employment information (e.g., résumé, work history, qualifications), and education information. This information is used for recruiting, evaluating your candidacy, conducting interviews, and managing the application process.

California residents may request access to or deletion of their personal information by contacting us at careers@cortland.com

GDPR Statement

When you apply to a job on this site, the personal data contained in your application will be collected by Cortland (“Controller”), which is located at 3424 Peachtree RD NE Suite 300 Atlanta, GA and can be contacted by emailing careers@cortland.com because Controller wishes to evaluate your candidacy for employment at Controller. Your personal data was either obtained from publicly available sources (e.g. LinkedIn) or provided to Controller by someone who referred you for potential employment. Controller’s data protection officer is Greg Shultz, who can be contacted at Greg.Shultz@cortland.com. Your personal data will be processed for the purposes of managing Controller’s recruitment related activities, which include setting up and conducting interviews and tests for applicants, evaluating and assessing the results thereto, and as is otherwise needed in the recruitment and hiring processes. Such processing is legally permissible under Art. 6(1)(f) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation) as necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the Controller, which are the solicitation, evaluation, and selection of applicants for employment.

Your personal data has been shared with Greenhouse Software, Inc., a cloud services provider located in the United States of America and engaged by Controller to help manage its recruitment and hiring process on Controller’s behalf. Accordingly, if you are located outside of the United States, your personal data has been transferred to the United States. Because the European Union Commission has determined that United States data privacy laws do not ensure an adequate level of protection for personal data collected from EU data subjects, the transfer was subject to appropriate additional safeguards under [either the standard contractual clauses or the Privacy Shield]. You can obtain a copy of the standard contractual clauses by contacting us at careers@cortland.com

Your personal data will be retained by Controller as long as Controller determines it is necessary to evaluate your application for employment. Under the GDPR, you have the right to request access to your personal data, to request that your personal data be rectified or erased, and to request that processing of your personal data be restricted. You also have to right to data portability. In addition, you may lodge a complaint with an EU supervisory authority.