Valuer lifts award for career ladder

Valuer Jay Sorensen has won the Property Institute of New Zealand's Young Property Professional of the Year Award. Photo / Duncan Brown

Leading a project to encourage young people to consider a career in property helped Jay Sorensen win the Property Institute of New Zealand's Young Property Professional of the Year Award.

"It is not a well-known career path and that is one of the initiatives we have looked at - making people more aware of the career and the opportunities out there," said the Logan Stone valuer.

Mr Sorensen specialising in horticulture, pastoral, lifestyle and viticulture valuations, has been with Logan Stone since graduating with a Bachelor in Applied Science double majoring in rural valuation, agribusiness and management from Massey University in 2008.

"There is a lot of older guys in it - like most professions probably - but particularly on the rural side there are a lot of older guys looking to retire within the next 10 years and there are not a lot coming through."

He is on the Property Institute Standards and Valuation Committee, providing a younger voice in reviewing new industry standards.

"I've been quite actively involved in the industry, as well as being involved with a leadership role for young professionals within the industry."

He was head boy at Lindisfarne College and recently helped set up the Hawke's Bay Young Professionals network.

In winning the award he follows the footsteps of Logan Stone director Boyd Gross, also a rural valuer, who won in 1997.

The award ceremony was part of the two-day Property Institute of New Zealand national conference in Christchurch las week.

The programme included site tours around the Red Zone and redevelopment projects. Speakers included Professor Edward Blakely from the Hurricane Katrina/New Orleans rebuild.