Insights into how to attract diversity to real estate

Holistic Insight was asked to support YEP's involvement at UKREiiF by undertaking a survey focused on perceptions about working in the built environment and how we attract the next generation.

YEP is a 5,500 strong membership organisation in the property sector which provides opportunities to make new connections, network, do business, share knowledge and learn new skills. Regionally, it has eight chapters in London, Leeds, Southampton, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield and Exeter. Following a series of round table discussions undertaken by YEP across its UK network to establish how to attract more diversity into the real estate sector, Holistic Insight conducted an online survey to understand why young people choose the industry, their routes in, what they like about their roles and how to encourage the next generation. Our findings uncovered a need to better communicate the opportunities and career prospects.

The survey respondents represented a 50/50 male female split with 55% aged between 21 and 29 and 40% between 30 and 39.  The top 5 findings of the survey include:

  • Addressing perceptions and misconceptions: the survey asked respondents about their perceptions before and after they joined the industry. 25% said they thought it would be friendly, but this increased to 75% once working in the sector. 40% thought it would be interesting, which grew to 60% after. Just 20% thought it would be fun, but 80% said it is!
  • Awareness of the jobs available: there are more than 50 different jobs in property, but these are not widely known. 71% of those surveyed cited a lack of awareness of roles and career opportunities as a key issue in attracting young people to the industry. In fact, 10% came into the industry by chance, an experience shared by a significant proportion of hackathon attendees.
  • More routes into the industry: 41% of respondents undertook a built environment degree and 10% came into the industry through a family connection. At the hackathon events, students attending felt there could be more promotion of alternative ways to get into the industry, such as apprenticeships, T Level, BTEC or internships. Attendees also raised an issue about equality in entry level roles – supporting apprentices and graduates in the same way, offering easier access and more grants for those less affluent, which would also help ensure greater diversity.
  • Spreading the word earlier: a third of respondents said we need to be educating about built environment jobs at junior and senior school level, with college being too late for many and restrictions on non-cognate degrees that deliver access to real estate restrictive.
  • Defining the USPs of a career in property: when asked about what people liked most about a career in real estate, the variety stands out as does the interesting nature of the work, with no two days the same. Career prospects and the opportunity to add value to society also featured highly. At the hackathon events, transferable skills and lateral moves were also highlighted as a major benefit.
Sophie Eastwood, Holistic Insight’s MD and Director of YEP, said: “The industry has a huge opportunity to attract great talent simply by raising awareness. Most of society’s visibility around property comes from construction sites, estate agents and local development proposals, particularly in terms of delivering homes. There is so much more to the sector, with over 50 different roles, all adding value in different ways. If the whole industry clubs together to reach a younger audience and show the value that the next generation can have on society through a career in the built environment, it can safeguard its future and attract the skills it needs to innovate and thrive.”