Salaries in realty sector to stay stable in 2016: Survey

RITIKA SHARMA / Emirates Business

Due to oil price slump, 2016 seems to be a cautious year for most of the industries. However, UAE real estate market looks somewhat unaffected. According to a GCC-centric survey, real estate industry salaries are expected to remain stable in the coming months of 2016.
The average monthly salaries for the Middle East real estate sector in the region are projected to hover around an average of AED44,392, with annual bonuses averaging AED84,498, according to Macdonald and Company’s 9th salary and attitudes survey for property and real estate sector in the Middle East.
“There is sound reason for optimism for the Dubai economy in particular, which has a strong fundamental base and an excellent track record for delivering high quality hospitality and retail projects. In the Real Estate sector, major government funded projects such as the Creek Extension, Bluewaters and Dubai Parks & Resorts remain on track and they will boost the economy,” said Ben Waddilove, MRICS, Director, Macdonald and Company.
The survey focuses on the economic climate, employment trends in the property sector, as well as salaries, rewards and attitudes in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region.56 percent of respondents consider the GCC region the ideal location for financial reasons.
“Despite a cautious employment market, entrepreneurial economies such as the UAE will prove resilient and quick to turn around, and of course, the’ Expo factor’ will kick in. GCC countries will gradually shift away from traditional hydra-carbon based economies to knowledge based economies,” pointed out Waddilove.
Although the survey shows that 75 percent of respondents are satisfied with their current employment, there are mixed sentiments regarding overall market confidence, and the employment market remains cautious due to the decline in oil prices which are forecast to remain in the US$30-50/barrel range for some time to come.
However, the survey explains much of the business activity is driven by government spending, and while longer term measures such as VAT are in the pipeline for the next few years, accumulated government reserves will cover short term funding requirements.
There is still a vast amount of real estate activity going on in the UAE and wider Gulf, which requires careful day-to-day management and facilities control, prudent long term asset management, and valuation (for accounting, loan and disposal purposes) — and there is still strong demand for qualified real estate
professionals with stable employment records and strong business and financial skills.
“The UAE remains a choice destination for many property professionals from around the globe and we feel that although overall this will be a cautious year – the medium term outlook is still strong,” stated Waddilove.