30 April, 2021

TAFE NSW is offering locals impacted by the COVID-hit job market an opportunity to reskill into the booming property valuation industry with the launch of a new degree.

The Bachelor of Property Valuation, which commenced in 2021, is being offered by virtual classroom and  marks the first time the degree has been offered by TAFE NSW outside of Sydney.

The announcement has been welcomed by the state’s valuation industry, which hopes it will help stem the “brain drain” from the regions and encourage young people into the industry in.

Previously, regional residents have had to travel to capital cities to access the degree, with many going on to live and work in the city after graduating.

Chairman of the Development Committee of the Albury branch of the Australian Property Institute and former Chief Property Consultant NSW of the Commonwealth Bank, Bob Allan, said: “It’s absolutely fantastic that TAFE NSW is offering this degree in regional areas.

“Local property valuation firms have historically had great difficulty in recruiting qualified valuers because once people go to Melbourne or Sydney to study, they rarely come back.

“We want prospective valuers to be able to study here, work part time while they’re studying to get practical skills and work experience and at the end of their degree, get full-time jobs.”

According to a report by Ibis World, the property valuation industry is worth $556m in Australia annually, employs nearly 3000 people and boasts 2118 separate businesses.

TAFE NSW Property Valuation Teacher Jon Frost, who has more than 20 years’ experience as a valuer, will deliver the degree and described it as a “coup” for the regions.

“Property valuation is a great industry to get into and about 80 per cent of graduates are working in the industry by the time they finish the degree,” Mr Frost said.

“I get valuing firms coming to me regularly looking for students to recruit.

“It really is a fabulous job; you’re not stuck in an office, you’re out and about meeting people and there’s so much variety in the properties that you value.

“The industry has an ageing workforce, so there’s never been a better time for people to study at TAFE NSW to get the skills they need for a job as a property valuer.”

The degree is three years’ full-time and requires 24 units of study, including units in rural, residential, commercial and retail valuation, as well as law and town planning. It includes a mix of face-to-face and online learning connected classroom study.

Mr Frost said those with existing property valuation qualifications, such as the Certificate IV, can get credit for up to two years of the three year degree.

The Bachelor of Property Valuation is Australia’s only specialist property valuation degree and has been developed in consultation with the Office of the NSW Valuer General, the NSW Office of Fair Trading and the Australian Property Institute.

To find out more about studying a Bachelor of Property Valuation at TAFE NSW, phone 13 16 01 or visit www.tafensw.edu.au.

Media contact: Daniel Johns, TAFE NSW Media and Communications – Business Partner, 6938 1441, mobile 0477 722 428.