Over 150 Members of the Property Management Industry Participated in the Property Management Services Authority’s 
Continuing Professional Development Seminar to Strengthen Knowledge on Building Water Seepage Handling and Water Safety

Over 150 members of the property management (PM) industry participated in the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) seminar organised by the Property Management Services Authority (PMSA) today to strengthen their knowledge on building water seepage handing and water safety.

Dr James WONG, Chairperson of the PMSA, said, “Water seepage is commonly caused by structural or equipment damage or lack of proper maintenance in buildings of Hong Kong. Property owners and occupants have the responsibility to properly manage, maintain and repair their own buildings, including resolving water seepage problems. In general, in the event of water seepage in private buildings, owners and occupants concerned should first arrange to identify the cause of the seepage, and then coordinate proper repair works with other relevant owners and occupants. Nevertheless, property management companies (PMCs) and practitioners (PMPs) should, when dealing with water seepage problems in residential buildings, provide assistance so as to properly resolve the problems.”

Chairperson WONG added, “Furthermore, potable water supplied by the Water Supplies Department is safe for drinking, but there is potential water quality issue arising from problems found in the internal plumbing system of the building, such as contaminated potable water due to inadequate cleaning of water tanks or the use of inappropriate plumbing materials. PMCs and PMPs have the responsbility to manage and maintain the building water supply system to safeguard water safety and the health of the public.”

The PMSA invited Food and Environmental Hygiene Department’s Senior Health Inspector (Customer Service) Ms. HUI Yuet-chun, Buildings Department’s Professional Officer Mr. CHAU Lap-kong, as well as Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors’ Former Chairman of the Building Surveying Division Sr. Kenny CK TSE and Council Member Sr. Margaret KM CHAN to share insights in the first half of the seminar on how the PM industry can deal with building water seepage problems and disputes. Water Supplies Department’s Chemist Mr. Eric SF CHEUNG and Project Coordinator Ms. Grace HY WONG were invited to introduce in the second half of the seminar the Water Safety Plan for Buildings of the Department.

All licensed PMPs who completed the seminar would earn two recognised CPD participation hours under the PMSA CPD Scheme and would be awarded Certificate of Participation issued by the PMSA.

From 1 January 2024 onwards, according to licensing requirements, licensed PMPs (Tier 1) will be required to participate in at least 12 hours of continuous professional education each year, and licensed PMPs (Tier 2) will be required to participate in at least 6 hours of continuous professional education each year from 1 January 2025 onwards. The PMSA has, from 1 August 2023 onwards, imposed condition on all newly issued or renewed licences requiring the licensees concerned to fulfil the mandatory participation requirements in CPD. Non-compliance would affect future licence renewal.

Under the CPD Scheme, the PMSA will continue to work with industry bodies, relevant Government departments and public organisations to organise PM-related CPD seminars regularly so as to offer licensed PMPs more opportunities for continuous professional education. In addition, activities/courses organised by the PMSA Recognised Professional Bodies and specified PMC organisations are pre-recognised  each year and such work will continue within the year. As of November this year, 157 training activities or courses organised by relevant professional bodies/organisations in 2023 have been recognised under the Scheme. Activities/Courses organised by the Government or public bodies, as well as courses offered by education institutions which are regulated by the Education Bureau or accredited by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications are automatically recognised under the CPD Scheme and require no advance approval. Licensed PMPs may add their participation record directly into the e-Recording system specifically launched by the PMSA under the CPD Scheme after attending these activities/courses.

Please refer to the PMSA website for details: https://www.pmsa.org.hk/en/professional-development/continuing-professional-development-scheme. 

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