Amid a backdrop of global economic uncertainty and subdued capital deployment into built assets, Singapore’s real estate sector has emerged as the world’s strongest pay-growth outlier, registering an average 14% salary increase that decisively outpaces remuneration gains in the United States and Europe, according to the latest Macdonald & Company survey of 12,000 industry professionals.
Singapore’s real estate sector delivers world-leading 14% pay growth amid global uncertainty and subdued capital deployment
The survey, encompassing real estate and related asset classes across major global markets, identifies Singapore as the clear leader in compensation momentum, with the 2026 data highlighting how the city-state’s asset market dynamics are translating into outsized wage growth despite volatility in interest rates and inflation. Notably, this has propelled Singapore’s real estate professionals to a median salary of S$158,400 at the start of 2026, placing the city-state third globally behind only the Middle East and the United States. Reflecting the sector’s broader strength, the report notes that real estate pay in Singapore has risen faster than in the US, the UK and Europe as a whole.
The report indicates that job mobility is a critical driver of this salary surge, with professionals who switch employers securing an average 32% pay hike, compared with a 7% increase for those who remain with their current organisations.
New roles in the market, whether lateral moves or strategic hires, deliver an average 14% salary uplift, closely matched by a 13% increase associated with internal promotions, underscoring how both external recruitment and internal advancement are being used to recalibrate compensation in line with competitive talent pressures.
While annual performance reviews remain the most common trigger for pay adjustments, the survey notes that they typically result in the smallest proportional increases, suggesting that reactive, event-driven hiring and promotion decisions are exerting greater influence on pay levels. The robust compensation growth is further supported by real estate investment volumes that increased by 28% YoY to S$28.62 billion in 2024, demonstrating sustained capital inflows into the sector.
Overall, 72% of real estate professionals in Singapore reported receiving a salary increase, contributing to a median remuneration of US$158,000, a figure that positions the city-state third globally by median salary and reinforces its status as a high-value employment hub.
The Macdonald & Company findings also sit against broader national labour-market projections, which point to a more modest 4% overall salary rise in Singapore in 2026, even as 97.6% of firms across sectors plan some form of pay increase.
Within this context, the real estate sector’s 14% average uplift, supported by resilient demand, urban regeneration initiatives, and hybrid work patterns reshaping asset utilisation, demonstrates a clear outperformance of general market trends, occurring alongside growth in other high-skill domains such as teaching and AI-related roles.
