Washington, D.C. – November 11, 2008 – Prior to the recent downturn in construction activity that is adversely affecting some architecture firms, the nonresidential construction sector had been expanding rapidly in recent years. This helped fuel a nearly six percent annual increase in average compensation for architecture positions between 2005 and 2008, the strongest period of growth since the American Institute of Architects (AIA) began collecting compensation information in 1990. The 2008 AIACompensation Survey also noted that compensation gains for architectural staff positions have significantly outpaced compensation gains in the broader economy in recent years. Architect positions saw a 30 percent increase in compensation between 2002 and 2008, more than half again as much as the gains for the private workforce, or for employees at professional and business services firms as measured by U.S. Department of Labor information.

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