Overview
What is a Real Estate Surveyor?
Real Estate Surveyors are built environment professionals involved in the management, purchase, sale or leasing of land and property. Their focus may be on maximising the value and return of an asset, which can range from a single building to a multi-million-pound portfolio.
Real estate professionals work across residential and commercial sectors, and as such they are referred to by a wide range of job titles, including Commercial Surveyors, Residential Surveyors and Commercial Property Surveyors among many others.
How much do Real Estate Surveyors earn?
The average salary of a Real Estate Surveyor is usually between £32,000 – £62,500 a year.
Skills
What’s required for the role?
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Strong numeracy skills
- Commercial awareness
- Attention to detail
- People management and leadership
- Interpersonal skills
- Creativity and problem-solving skills
- The ability to network and build relationships
- Digital literacy and IT skills
- Report writing
- Project management
- Data analysis
- Negotiation skills
- Knowledge of construction and the real estate market
Details
What does a Real Estate Surveyor do?
A typical Real Estate Surveyor will perform a range of activities in their role, including:
What is the work environment like?
Most real estate professionals spend their time either in the office or on-site with clients. They may work in the public sector or private practice, and often choose to specialise in commercial or residential markets.
Within these two markets, Real Estate Surveyors can focus on areas like agency, asset management, landlord and tenant work and property management. Many professionals choose to work across these departments before choosing which one to specialise in.
Outside of public sector and private practice employers, freelance and self-employment work is another option.
Opportunities
Is real estate a good career?
Real estate is an industry driven by people, relationships and property, and the most successful professionals tend to thrive on building genuine connections with clients and colleagues. If this appeals to you, you could be a great fit for this type of surveying.
With many roles being commission-based, it’s important to be disciplined, self-motivated and willing to put in the extra work, as these can pay off significantly when it comes to salary, career progression and development opportunities.
These factors also make it an especially competitive field. Real estate professionals often work long hours, and their success can be greatly influenced by both the fluctuating conditions of the real estate market and their ability to keep pace with an evolving industry.
The emergence of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) targets, particularly in commercial real estate, as an organisational priority has also made sustainability an essential aspect of this role, meaning this career path can also be appealing to people who are passionate about protecting the environment.
Become a Real Estate Surveyor
Who can work in real estate?
If you’re excited by the prospect of real estate, there’s nothing stopping you from joining this industry. At UCEM, thousands of students from various backgrounds have completed their studies and launched careers in real estate and the wider built environment. Find out more about their experiences below:
How to become a Real Estate Surveyor
A non-cognate or Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited and relevant degree is usually required for professionals in this area. Most surveyors work towards achieving chartered status with RICS (MRICS).
Along with obtaining professional qualifications, online CPD courses in relevant subjects can strengthen your employment credentials, such as:
