RICS Announces Results of Salary & Benefits Survey 2007

RICS Announces Results of Salary & Benefits Survey 2007

November 27, 2007

Macau Demonstrates Its Huge Potential by Outperforming All
AP Countries

    HONG KONG, Nov. 27 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- The Royal
Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and Macdonald
& Company today announces results of the Salary &
Benefits Survey 2007. 

    Average annual salary of professionals working in
property sector in 2007 is US$82,636, which represents a
double-digit growth of approximately 17% (average annual
salary of 2006 was US$70,683). Although the highest
percentage of salary increment was recorded in China in
2006 (13.8%), its influential position is replaced by Macau
in 2007, which is currently expanding in an unprecedented
speed.  China has recorded only 9.5 % of salary growth in
2007 while Macau has 16.6% record high of salary growth.

    Average salary of property professionals in Hong Kong
increased by 8.7% this year (2006: 6.3%). Although a higher
rate of increase is recorded for 2007, Hong Kong only ranks
fifth among other Asia Pacific countries. Industry players
in Malaysia also experience double digit salary growth
among other Asia Pacific countries, representing tremendous
increase in demand for industry professionals.

    Survey result also reflects that workforce in
Commercial / Residential Development is with the highest
average salary (US$141,911), which is slightly ahead of
average salary earned by workforce in Corporate Real Estate
and Fund Management business (US$139,478 and US$133,905
respectively) Over 60% interviewees received bonus over the
past 12 months with an average rate at 21% of their salary
(approximately US$17,633 or HK$137,537).

    71% of Real Estate (RE) industry players received pay
rise in 2007 with an average increment rate of 9%, which
represents a drastic growth from the same period in 2006
and also demonstrates the huge development potential of the
industry. Among all RE related industries, Valuation and
Fund Management specialties experienced the most prominent
double-digit growth.

    Background of Survey
    Salary & Benefits Survey has been conducted in UK
for a consecutive eight years and is one of the most
influential survey reports in the world. With the booming
development of the Asia Pacific region in recent years,
RICS started the Salary & Benefits Survey tailored for
Asia Pacific in 2006 to allow a better grasp of practical
industry data for professionals working in the region.
    
    Salary & Benefits Survey was jointly organized by
RICS and Macdonald and Company and conducted, through
online questionnaire, by an independent research firm.  A
total of 1,226 completed questionnaires were received in
October this year, among which detailed analysis was
conducted. 

    Ms Cindy Kwong, Head of Marketing and Development,
RICS, says " Last year, we have successfully received
a very positive feedback from a pool of 769 industry
players, while this year the pool has expanded to 1,226
active players in the region. This further reflects the
authoritativeness of the survey. This year, we also
included more countries such as Australia, India and others
in order to draw a more representative picture of the salary
and career trend for the profession in the region and thus
help them get prepared for upcoming challenges."

    Mr. William Glover, International Director, Macdonald
and Company, says "The Macdonald & Company/RICS
salary surveys which are now conducted around the world,
help to bring greater transparency and understanding of the
changing employment conditions in the dynamic property
industry. Our clients and the RICS members within the
region benefit from being able to use the data to help plan
their human resource strategies and ensure that their staff
are accurately compensated in a what is currently a
competitive market for professional property talent."

    About RICS
    RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) is the
mark of property professionalism worldwide. It covers all
aspects of property, construction and associated
environmental issues. RICS has 140,000 members globally and
represents, regulates and promotes the work of property
professionals throughout 122 countries.

    The RICS Asia Pacific supports a network of over 9,000
individual professionals across the Asia Pacific region in
Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri-Lanka, Thailand, The
People's Republic of China, the SAR Hong Kong, India,
Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, The Maldives, Pakistan, The
Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.  For more details, please
visit our website: http://www.rics.org/asiapacific . 

    About MacDonald and Company

    Macdonald & Company is the leading professional
recruitment consultancy to the property industry. Macdonald
& Company deals exclusively in the recruitment of
property professionals across the UK and worldwide. They
act for a diverse range of clients. These include banks,
consultancies, property companies, funds, institutions,
developers -- indeed, any organisation that occupies, owns,
invests in or advises on property.  For more details, please
visit our website:  http://www.macdonaldandcompany.hk .

    Media enquiry, please contact:

    RICS Asia Pacific Public Relations Representative

     Ms Belinda Chan / Ms Katherine Chow
     Tel:    [phone]	
     Fax:    [phone]	
     Mobile: [phone]
     Email:  [e-mail] / [e-mail]