South Africa’s youth unemployment figure (between 15-24 years of age) is dismal. Q1 of 2023 shows that 62.1% are unemployed. It’s one of the highest in the world for this demographic, and yet they are considered globally as the most prolifically engaged digital users, with a daily screen time average of 09h38 minutes.
Youth and technology
Many headlines highlight that the future of work is digital and traditional ways of performing job duties are changing rapidly. It’s commonly acknowledged that SA lags somewhat - when compared to developed nations - in terms of real estate tech adoption, but there is a workforce in existence, and in the making, that is and will be pushing for more tech adoption. In fact, stats show that 16-year-olds - versus any other age group - are more likely to pursue a technologically driven career.
With information technology growing at some 12% per annum, it makes utter sense for all industries, (let alone residential property enterprises) to tap into the capabilities of digital generations; those born from 1996 onwards, who have been completely shaped by the tech age having grown up using or surrounded by technology that impacts almost every aspect of their lives. This is why they are referred to as ‘digital natives’, as opposed to ‘digital immigrants' which refers to those who have to acquire digital abilities.
Ironically, before this demographic can secure a job, one of their challenges is to overcome being considered employable because many businesses exclude them as being too young and inexperienced! Obviously alongside are all the other aspects that stunt employability. These include low levels of education, lack of strong networks within the job market, insufficient financial resources to enable not only further education but mobility to attend educational institutions, low entry level wages, and lack of career guidance.
Compounding this in the real estate market, is that there are lags in the adoption of technology, due largely to a lack of resources, and resistance to change. Just as ironically is that these are both aspects that the youth can address because they embrace and welcome change and are adept at using even the most basic of smart tech to innovate.
A career in the property market is rarely put forward in career guidance, which is somewhat sad given that there are few prerequisites to become a property practitioner other than complying with the Property Practitioners Act Education Regulations, which includes a 12-month internship as part of the qualification process. During that 12-month period they have an opportunity to earn a small income, yet once qualified they are acknowledged as being as capable as any seasoned property practitioner, albeit without years of experience.
Youth unemployment
The question that has to be asked, therefore, is whether the residential property industry as a whole is addressing youth unemployment by creating and promoting property employment opportunities? The Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA) website highlights its ‘One Learner - One Estate Agency’ Youth empowerment programme, but reaching a spokesperson for commentary proved difficult.
Essentially this programme is aimed at ‘placing intern estate agents in the service of registered estate agency enterprises so that they may act under the supervision and control of a suitably qualified mentor as they take their journey from Intern Agent to Professional Practitioner in real Estate, and finally Master Practitioner in Real Estate.’ The One Learner programme aims to source 10 000 young interns and previously disadvantaged or disabled persons, and requires them to have a matriculation, TVET graduation, university and university of technology qualification.
On completion of the 12-months internship and having achieved the NQF Level 4 real estate qualification, interns then have to pass the Professional Designation Examination for non-principal estate agents (PDE 4). The website does not mention the fee, but whatever it is, there is an opportunity for a mentor agent or agency to step up and sponsor those costs. It would be appreciated to see more philanthropic acts of this nature because it addresses both the youth unemployment situation and introduces new blood in the industry.
Property practitioners and agencies should also be visiting schools and sharing knowledge with learners about what is required to be a property practitioner and the fact that in just 12 months they could hold a qualification. In the USA, a real estate agent is held in high esteem and the role is considered aspirational because it can bring much wealth in a short period of time, especially if mentored by those whose success in the industry is well established.
The youth in residential property have a big contribution to make. There is a market of clients that show a preference towards a younger property practitioner who is active across social media networks, and more so if they are tapping into analytics. These clients may be equally as young as the agent and thus can develop a long-term relationship with one another, thereby allowing the building of a strong network of connections. Bear in mind that many of the youth already have triple digit followers, even if a large proportion of them have never met. This makes their networks extremely broad and powerful.
Also, we have to factor in the Internet of Things, which has made the world appear smaller, and that the youth don’t see borders in the same way that older generations do. It is, therefore, not inconceivable that our future agents will not have any physical contact at all with their clients. It is, in fact, already happening.
All of these trends point towards a bright future for the youth in the residential property sector. With their digital innovations comes deep insights into how best to engage with buyers and sellers at different points in a journey, which will lead to great success in sales conversions.
It’s time to change perceptions of age being a negative – whether one is older or younger - because it is disempowering, which is the opposite of what everyone should strive for. Empowerment for the youth means being able to enter into the job market and the economy through business opportunities, and have no doubt that when they gain the experience, so too will their confidence enable them to challenge the status quo of the industry, and largely for the better.
Writer: Kerry Dimmer