In what ways can the Property Management Services Ordinance enhance the professionalism of the practitioners of the property management field?

Abstract

The Legislative Council had passed the third reading of the Property Management Services Ordinance on 26th May, 2016 and the Property Management Services Authority was set up in December, 2016. The Property Management Services Ordinance Chapter 660 was then effective which governs the future licensing system for the three tiers including a property management company licence; a property management practitioner (Tier 1) licence and a property management practitioner (Tier 2) licence. When it is 36 months after all the subsidiary legislations have been set up, all property management practitioners in the relevant field have to gain the licences from the Property Management Services Authority. In the past, the practitioners of the Property Management field were regarded ‘as not professionalized as’ its counterparts like the doctors of the medical field and the solicitors of the law field. However, with the assistance of the Property Management Services Ordinance, the practitioners of the Property Management field will become more and more professionalized. It is because as the entry barrier raises in terms of the academic qualification level of the new entrants and the standard of services rendered by the practitioners moves upwards, the relevant field will be more professionalized. In this dissertation, the areas and extent that the Property Management Services Ordinance will enhance the professionalism of the practitioners of the Property Management field will be studied. Comparison of the norm and behaviour for the practitioners of the relevant fields before and after the enactment of the relevant Ordinance will be made. Moreover, the contrast and similarities between the professional bodies representing the Property Management practitioners with the other well established professional bodies, like the Medical Council of Hong Kong and the Law Society of Hong Kong, will also be examined in details to position the level of professionalization of the Property Management field in Hong Kong. Interviews are conducted to collect the fresh primary data concerning the Property Management field in Hong Kong. Indeed, the prediction about the future practices of the Property Management field will also be made, consisting of the operation of the Property Management Services Authority. Moreover, the recommendations to enhance the possible professionalism of the Property Management field in future in a business management point of view will be attempted. At last, a conclusion stands as a comprehension to all the areas of study will be presented. The writer hope that this dissertation can serve as a reference by the relevant government officials and council members of the Property Management Services Authority when they are preparing the subsidiary legislations and drawing up the blueprint for the future professionalization of the Property Management field, so that the relevant field would truly engage into and belong to a well-established professional field, thus serve the public since the Property Management field is an utmost important field concerning the welfare of the public in Hong Kong.