Property & Urban Development

The property and urban development industry is a diverse sector offering a range of employment opportunities. From creating new residential communities to ensuring the sustainable future of our cities and towns, property and urban development plays an integral part in the way people live.

In 2008, there were over 1.2 million professionals employed in Property and Business Services (National Industry Skills Committee 2009). The industry is a major contributor to the Australian national and state economies in areas of employment and gross domestic and state product (GDP and GSP), contributing an average of 12 per cent to GDP over the last five years (Australian Bureau of Statistics - ABS, June 2009).

The work The industry incorporates businesses of all sizes covering a diversity of activities, skills and technologies. It includes large capital-intensive and export-oriented firms through to small family businesses.

The ABS identifies the industry as consisting of those units predominantly engaged in ‘renting and leasing assets as well as units engaged in providing a wide variety of business services’. It offers careers in finance, development facilitation and management and construction to professionals trained in many disciplines, such as Urban Design, Engineering, Environment, Commerce and Project Management, to name only a few.

What you need

  • Town Planner/Urban Designer - BA (Urban/Regional Planning)
  • Engineer - B Eng (Civil or Environmental)
  • Environmental Consultant - BSc (Environment)
  • Valuer - B Com (Property Valuation)
  • Financial Consultant - B Com (Property); B Econ
  • Surveyor - B Surveying TAFE
  • Real Property Lawyer - Bachelor of Law LLB
  • Architect - B Arch; BAppSc
  • Landscape Architect - B Landscape Architecture
  • PR/Marketing/Sales - B Com (Marketing); B Bus
  • Project Management - BA (Community Development)
  • Event Manager - B Com (Marketing, PR, Events); TAFE
  • Artist - BA; TAFE

(NB: Examples only; opportunities are not limited_ to these degrees)

GCA and Graduate Opportunities would like to thank the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) for assistance with this industry profile. For more information, visit www.udia.com.au

“My career started as a Trainee Estate Officer at Peet during my final year of university...There are positions for creative individuals, as well as for those who are more analytical...Expect to be exposed to issues around sales, town planning, cost-benefit analysis, the environment, public relations, project management, engineering, managing people and more.”
-- Ryan Hunter, Senior Analyst, Peet Limited.

Money matters: graduate salary ranges for selected relevant occupations

  • Architect: $38,000-$48,000
  • Landscape Architect: $40,000-$47,800
  • Property Manager: $38,000-$65,000
  • Real Estate Agent: $30,000-$50,000
  • Surveyor: $42,000-$60,000
  • Urban and Regional Planner: $45,000-$55,000
  • Valuer: $37,500-$60,000

-- Figures from the Australian Graduate Survey 2008, GCA. Ranges refer to the middle 50 per cent of salaries for bachelor degree graduates with permanent residency, in full-time employment in Australia Oct 07-Apr 08.

Industry at a Glance
Source: www.joboutlook.gov.au; Australian Bureau of Statistics; “An Environmental Scan of Trends & Developments Impacting on the Australian Workforce” (National Industry Skills Committee, April 2009)

  • 60% employment growth (urban & regional planners, 2004-09)
  • 12% Australia’s GDP (sector contribution, 2004-09)
  • Positive outlook (324,000 new jobs: property & business services, 2008-16)