AIA: Nonresidential Construction Prompts Architectural Salary Boost

WASHINGTON — Salaries at architectural firms rose significantly as spending on nonresidential construction grew more than 40 percent during the last three years, according to a survey of compensation at architecture firms published by the American Institute of Architects.

However, due to the recent economic crises, construction activity has slowed and the trend of increasing architect salaries is unlikely to continue, according to AIA officials.

“In light of the economic downturn, it would be surprising if salaries continued to go up,” says Scott Frank, AIA spokesperson.

Architect salaries were up 5.7 percent in the last three years, the strongest period of growth since the AIA began tracking compensation in 1990. The national average salary for an architect rose to more than $73,000, more than double the average compensation in 1993 and nearly 50 percent higher than the average compensation level in 1999, according to the tri-annual study.

“Compensation growth among architecture staff has obviously been influenced by recent strength in the nonresidential construction sector,” the report states. “Growth in nonresidential construction activity has increased the need for architectural staff at firms, and the simple economics of increased staffing needs has helped to force up compensation levels.”

The report says construction activity was strongest in office, retail and hotel facilities, where spending increased about 50 percent.

“Compensation gains were fastest for mid-range staff architect and designer positions,” says Kermit Baker, AIA chief economist. “Part of this is based on the heavy demand for architectural services in recent years which helped drive up salaries.”

Despite the gains, architect salaries are lower than professions that do comparable work, according to the study. Salaries for civil and mechanical engineers are slightly higher, according to numbers released by the U.S. Department of Labor in 2007.

Large architect firms pay more than smaller firms, according to the study.

“The average salaries for all architect positions at firms with fewer than 20 employees are lower than the national average,” the survey states. “Firms with more than 100 employees, on the other hand, have salaries that are higher than the national average for all positions.”

Official designation as an architect is another way of raising salary. Licensed architects made more money than designers and architects with similar job descriptions but no license.

“The registered architect has an average salary that is 24 percentage points higher than the unlicensed designer,” the survey states.