Deloitte suggests otherwise. High turnover rates and an aging workforce will soon result in a huge global talent shortage for residential and commercial real estate companies.
The real estate industry employs nearly 4 million people in the U.S., 2.3 million of which were born before 1962. That means that nearly 58 percent of the real estate work force will be of retirement age by 2010, says the report.
But wait -- isn't Generation X, those aged 25 to 37, waiting in the wings. No. Gen X isn't large enough to replace the bulge of boomers, no pun intended, and besides, the industry already blew it with them. We didn't make it academically or financially compelling enough, and we haven't done anything to show the Gen Xers that things have changed. In fact, they're worse. Now Gen Xers have seen two housing meltdowns in their lifetimes in the early 90s and now and when you see more people lose money than make money, it's hard to recruit.
Let's take property management, for example. Today, property managers have to be increasingly sophisticated. They have to manage the physical aspects of the job, and oversee their asset management duties which includes budgeting, financial forecasting and market analysis. The problem is the two-year training cycle clashes with the 31-percent annual turnover rate, which suggests that salaries aren't complementing the demands of the job.
So if you're wondering why the sprinkler never gets fixed at your condo, that's why.
At the other end of the working age spectrum, you have Generation Y, the 46.7 million people born between 1982 and 1993. And they may not want to get into real estate, at least not without the proper motivation.
Gen Y's young workers are about 12 percent of the real estate workforce. They see themselves as the customers of their companies -- so they look for technologically advanced workplaces. They have a different value set than the workaholic baby boomers. They want flexibility and insist on a better work-life balance.
Don't ask them to put in overtime, or you'll be reported to the department of labor. On the other hand, this generation is socially responsible and just might save your Social Security butt down the road.
So what can be done to recruit members of Generation Y to your company? Make it clear that your company meets their core needs and values -- flexibility, balance, respect, and accessibility.
Deloitte also suggests:
- Long-term career development and multiple experiences within a single organization
- Sense of purpose and meaning in the work
- Availability and access to mentors and other company champions
- Social networks that embrace open/honest communication.
You could also try paying them more money, too.
