It takes some time for members of any industry to become professionals, as the road to professionalism
is long and requires a lot of hard work. However,
if we do not start at some point in time, then the professionalisation process will never take off. It is very much in the advantage of the practitioners themselves to develop and project a professional image to the community, and of course the professional outlook has to be sustained by knowledge and performance both at professional standards. I am very glad to note that the view you mentioned is not shared by the majority of the licensees who are progressive-minded and who look forward to scaling new heights in their pursuit of professional excellence.

All I can say is that it has not been easy, as the Estate Agents Ordinance and its subsidiary legislation were enacted at a time when the property market in Hong Kong was gradually receding from its peak. Business opportunities became fewer as transactions decreased, and the introduction of the licensing and regulatory regime did meet with some initial resistance from the trade. However, after the three-year transition period during which all licensees had to pass a qualifying examination or undergo a substantial training course, everyone has come to a better understanding of the how and why of the regulatory system.

When talking about difficulties I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of members of the Authority, and the Chief Executive Officer, during these years, for their will to serve the community and their indefatigable spirit in coping with problems. Their support has been very encouraging to me all along.

A questionnaire survey administered to licensees indicated that the majority of practitioners are in favour of continuing professional development programmes, and the EAA will task itself to research on the subject with a view to developing directions and policies that will facilitate such programmes. We will aim at producing more training materials which will help licensees to enhance their professional knowledge and assist them in their business practice. Efforts will also be made to help licensees explore other opportunities for professional development.

We will pursue an electronic licensing project in stages, to raise the efficiency in licence renewal exercises and to provide greater convenience to licensees in submitting statutory declarations. We will also introduce a uniform Licensee Identity Card which will prove to be useful in helping practitioners identify themselves in the course of work.

We will seek further occasions to cooperate with the trade associations in areas such as the recruitment and training of practitioners, to the benefit of the further development of the trade.

This has to be the debates over the reduction of licence fees. Since the Licensing Regulation came into force in January 1999 the EAA has twice reduced licence fees, by 20% in 2000 and a further 30% in 2002. The main reason why the Authority was in a position to reduce fees substantially on two occasions over three years was that there was a cumulative surplus derived from an unexpectedly large number of individuals applying for the licence in 1999. While the number of licensees gradually decreased as the floodgate effect subsided, the EAA, which has always been operated on strict principles of economy and cost-effectiveness, found that it was in a position to reduce licence fees, in both 2000 and early 2002, to help practitioners tide over a difficult time. However, there were considerable clamours both from the trade and at the Legislative Council when the fee reduction proposals were put forward, demanding more substantial fee cuts or reducing licence fees to a token levy.

The EAA is unique in being the only statutory organisation in Hong Kong that is operated entirely on income derived from licence fees, and the above question has to be understood in the light of the fact that estate agency is a trade in which great mobility exists among practitioners. According to our statistics, the mobility rate of licensees between 1999 and 2002 is as high as 46%. Furthermore, the proportion of estate agents to salespersons has also changed considerably. Such factors have made it very difficult for the Authority to predict the number of licensees in subsequent years, and hence its income, with any degree of accuracy. We have to plan our finance very carefully so as to prevent large-scale fluctuations in fee levels as much as we can. On the other hand the Authority is also proactively researching on other levy options, and practitioners will be extensively consulted in the course of such studies.