The current average base salary of real estate experts in the Middle East remains in line with last year despite regional unrest and global uncertainty, said a survey by property  recruitment specialist Macdonald & Company.

The company unveiled its fifth ‘Middle East Salary Survey’ on Tuesday at the opening of ‘Cityscape Global 2011,’ a premier event for the real estate industry, in Dubai.

In its findings, Macdonald & Co said the average base monthly salary of regional real estate professionals across all disciplines had seen a slight dip from Dh38351 ($10,441) last year to Dh37,965 ($10,335).

According to the survey, 30 per cent of subjects received a hike in their base salaries this year, compared to only 25 per cent last year.

'While 5 per cent experienced pay cuts compared to 11 per cent last year, 42 per cent saw no variance in their wages,' it added.

The survey further showed that the average bonus witnessed a 4.4 per cent per cent jump from Dh73,246 last year to Dh76,431.

Out of the total number of individuals that took part in the study, 40 per cent had received a bonus in the last 12 months, while 21 per cent of the respondents were made redundant, demonstrating a three per cent decrease as compared to 2010.

From the total number of individuals that were made redundant, 78 per cent have already found employment (an upward movement from last year’s 69 per cent), the survey revealed.

The study also identified that salary and responsibility, followed by job security and career progression were the most important factors in determining job satisfaction.

About 76 per cent of the respondents from the survey said they were fairly or very satisfied with their current employment.

According to the survey, professionals are still very attracted to the region for financial, career and family reasons, particularly when compared to current available opportunities in the UK, Europe and the US.

A majority of respondents agree that the wider political unrest will have long-term positive results for the Arab World, said a senior official.

“The current situation is challenging but we expect that the Gulf states will be resilient to global economic uncertainty and we will be looking for rebuild stories as the Arab Spring plays out,” said Ben Waddilove, director, Macdonald and Company.

'We are confident that there will be a continuing demand for high caliber property professionals in the wider Middle East region particularly with strong asset management skills,' he noted.

A total of 1,439 real estate professionals from across the Middle East region took part in this year’s survey, with a higher percentage of respondents based in the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The latest survey reflects an increased response rate, perhaps showing continuing migration into the region, and a greater number of the overall respondents have now been here for more than five years, said the official.

'An almost equal amount of respondents are now from the UK and Europe as are from Asia and the Far East,' he added.

The survey found that less people were now working in Dubai and more in Abu Dhabi (37 per cent are still working in Dubai, 28 per cent are now working in Abu Dhabi).

Furthermore, Dubai has been deemed by the survey as the top location in terms of lifestyle, infrastructure and amenities.

'According to the survey findings, 40 per cent of the respondents still strongly believe that economic activity will increase over the next 12 months and only 12 per cent believe that activity will decrease,' said Waddilove.
 
'We remain committed to providing honest, consultative advice and we are proud to launch this year’s ‘Middle East Salary Survey’ to visitors here at Cityscape Global,' he added.

The survey, completed in collaboration with Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and Cityscape Connect, has been identified as the most comprehensive one undertaken for the real estate sector annually.

It offered a comprehensive report on salary trends within the real estate industry in addition to important insights on the outlook of employees.-TradeArabia News Service