The American Institute of Architects released their Design Trends study earlier this week. The survey was done this Spring with responses from more than 500 architecture firms.
One area of focus was on the trending of demand for different job types — a clear indicator of which segments of the market are strengthening and which are weakening.
Over all, AIA concludes, the market was showing signs of stabilizing.
The extended slowdown in the housing market is showing signs of stabilizing with the residential billings index increasing almost 20 points over the past two quarters. The national billings index was 38 for the second quarter (any score below 50 indicates a decline in activity), up from the low mark of 24 the previous quarter. Inquiries for new projects also increased to a mark of 47 following a score of 35 in the first quarter of 2009.
Clearly, the strength in the market is in existing remodeling jobs, with improvement in first-time buyer work. The high-end of the market — luxury homes and second homes — has actually worsened over the past year.
The implications of this shift are significant for design professionals. With smaller jobs taking the place of larger jobs, professionals need to shift their focus to increasing their volume of work, and need to shift their sales approach to interacting more effectively with more cost-conscious consumers.
You can find the highlights from the survey at http://www.aia.org/press/releases/AIAB081318.
