HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) welcomes the passing of the "Property Management Services Bill" (the Bill) in Legislative Council today. The Bill initiates the development of a licensing system that will lead to quality improvements throughout the property management industry.
“RICS welcomes the regulatory system for the property management profession. The mandatory licensing system and the establishment of Property Management Services Authority (PMSA) will upgrade the industry’s professionalism and quality of services, and it will raise public awareness of the responsibilities of property management practitioners”, said Mr Andrew Lee FRICS, Chair of the RICS Hong Kong board. “Proper management of properties ensures overall safety and minimises risks that may arise as a result of improper maintenance”, he added.
The Bill enacts implementation of licensing processes to raise professional standards of the industry. It provides for a single-tier licensing regime of property management companies and a two-tier licensing regime of property management practitioners. Only those practitioners who take up supervisory or managerial roles in property management services will be subject to licensing. The licensing criteria will be set in terms of academic qualifications, professional qualifications, years of working experience and the suitability of the persons in holding PMP licenses.
Currently, regulatory authorities for the profession are found in Australia, New Zealand and the Republic of Ireland. Main function of these authorities ranges from licensing of service providers, establishment of dispute investigation and redress systems and setting and enforcement of standards. Also, RICS helps regulate the sector by introducing the RICS Practice Statement and Real Estate Management Guidance, which is mandatory on any of RICS members working in this sector.
About RICS
Confidence through Professional Standards
RICS promotes and enforces the highest professional qualifications and standards in the development and management of land, real estate, construction and infrastructure. Our name promises the consistent delivery of standards – bringing confidence to the markets we serve.
We accredit 118,000 professionals and any individual or firm registered with RICS is subject to our quality assurance. Their expertise covers property, asset valuation, real estate management; the development of infrastructure; and the management of natural resources, such as mining, farms and woodland. From environmental assessments and building controls to negotiating land rights in an emerging economy; if our members are involved the same professional standards and ethics apply.
We believe that standards underpin effective markets. With up to seventy per cent of the world’s wealth bound up in land and real estate, our sector is vital to economic development, helping to support stable, sustainable investment and growth around the globe.
With offices covering the major political and financial centres of the world, our market presence means we are ideally placed to influence policy and embed professional standards. We work at a cross-governmental level, delivering international standards that will support a safe and vibrant marketplace in land, real estate, construction and infrastructure, for the benefit of all.
We are proud of our reputation and work hard to protect it, so clients who work with an RICS professional can have confidence in the quality and ethics of the services they receive.
About RICS Asia
RICS Asia supports a network of over 20,000 individual professionals across the Asia region with an objective to help develop the land, property and construction markets in these countries, by introducing professional standards, best practice education and training. We promote RICS and our members as the natural advisors on all property matters. We also ensure that services and career development opportunities are provided to members.
RICS Asia region serves local member associations located in Brunei, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, The People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan and South Korea. It also has members working across the region such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma/Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Kiribati, Laos PDR, Macao SAR, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea, The Maldives, The Philippines, Timor East and Vietnam. For more information, please visit: www.rics.org.
