A positive employment outlook is always good news for the property market, and the SA job prospects for 2008 are excellent.

So says Dr Piet Botha, chairman of the Nationlink estate agency group, who notes that while increased employment does not necessarily spell a rise in property prices, it generally means an increase in the number of sales.

Referring to the most recent Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, he says it is notable that SA is among the countries with the strongest first quarter hiring prospects in 2008, with 27% of local employers expecting to increase their staff complement in this period.

And Jan Coetzee, MD of Manpower SA, has recently been quoted as saying these results indicate a positive trend that is expected to continue throughout the year.

The survey, which is conducted quarterly by the Manpower human resources group across 27 countries, shows that hiring expectations in SA are strongest in the mining sector, and also especially good in the electricity, water supply and manufacturing sectors.

Several other sectors, such as construction and finance/insurance/real estate/business services, are also continuing to benefit in hiring terms from infrastructure development and the build-up to the Soccer World Cup in 2010.

Regionally, the survey reveals that job prospects will be best in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng during the first quarter and in terms of demand, it shows that engineering and project management skills are at the top of the list.

Meanwhile, says Botha, it is encouraging that SA’s 70 biggest companies, the members of Business Leadership SA, have now committed themselves to making skills development a priority in their businesses and to building closer relationships with educational institutions to ensure an adequate “pipeline” of skills for the future.

“This will ensure that there are suitably qualified people to fill the new positions that are being created, and in time will also enable even more people to purchase their own homes.”

Articlre by: www.nationlinkproperty.com