I am a practicing designer in Los Angeles with about 5 1/2 years of experience. Considering high costs of living in LA and working at a small firm which I am excited about but which can only offer a limited salary, I have started to give thought to supplementing my income. I have heard recently of young architects getting into accessory dwelling unit design as well as soft-story retrofitting.
For someone who is not licensed yet but wishes to moonlight outside of their 9-5, I am curious if anyone has advice on how to procure work/projects with quick turnarounds.
All thoughts and advice are welcome, thanks very much.
tduds
Mar 4, 20 1:29 pm
Read some books on Real Estate. That's my current plan.
leonizer
Mar 10, 20 11:22 am
How does reading make monies?
tduds
Mar 10, 20 12:15 pm
Gotta learn if you wanna do.
SneakyPete
Mar 4, 20 1:31 pm
Be careful holding yourself out as a Practicing Architectural Designer.
Are you looking for drafting work, or residential design work?
For drafting work, look for opportunities to socialize with other architects in your area, and let it be known you're available to take in "overflow" drafting work.
For residential design, network with real estate agents - often when they sell a house, the first thing the new owner wants to do is to redo the kitchen or bath, or add a deck, or some such, so real estate agents can be good for referrals.
As SneakyPete said, be very careful about not holding yourself out as an architect - I used to include a clause in my agreements, as well as a statement on the cover sheet of any drawings I produced, specifically stating that I was an unlicensed designer practicing within the restrictions of Section 5537.
rothko67
Mar 10, 20 2:35 am
You don’t need to be registered to design single family (wood frame) homes. You simply cannot claim to provide “architectural” services, refer to the term architecture, arch, or anything that can be remotely confused with architecture.
What is soft story retrofitting? It sounds structural..
Wood Guy
Mar 10, 20 8:37 am
Retrofits to buildings with first-floor parking or otherwise minimalist structure. Usually seismic.
I've been hearing soft-story recently (like only in the last 2 weeks) by some clients and my boss/owner. It seems like it's the new buzzword for interior design work, fit-out, etc.
Non Sequitur
Mar 10, 20 7:45 am
I always assumed it meant retail fit-up.
joseffischer
Mar 10, 20 1:52 pm
You're probably right. the fit-out (Up in Canada?) in question was retail.
Kyu Kim
Mar 10, 20 2:26 pm
I thought "soft story retrofitting" traditionally refers to garages and ground floor entry levels on a multi-story building. At least that makes sense in San Francisco where these soft stories literally lacked the proper shear resistance and collapsed in past earthquakes.
Dear all,
I am a practicing designer in Los Angeles with about 5 1/2 years of experience. Considering high costs of living in LA and working at a small firm which I am excited about but which can only offer a limited salary, I have started to give thought to supplementing my income. I have heard recently of young architects getting into accessory dwelling unit design as well as soft-story retrofitting.
For someone who is not licensed yet but wishes to moonlight outside of their 9-5, I am curious if anyone has advice on how to procure work/projects with quick turnarounds.
All thoughts and advice are welcome, thanks very much.
Read some books on Real Estate. That's my current plan.
How does reading make monies?
Gotta learn if you wanna do.
Be careful holding yourself out as a Practicing Architectural Designer.
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC§ionNum=5536.
Are you looking for drafting work, or residential design work?
For drafting work, look for opportunities to socialize with other architects in your area, and let it be known you're available to take in "overflow" drafting work.
For residential design, network with real estate agents - often when they sell a house, the first thing the new owner wants to do is to redo the kitchen or bath, or add a deck, or some such, so real estate agents can be good for referrals.
As SneakyPete said, be very careful about not holding yourself out as an architect - I used to include a clause in my agreements, as well as a statement on the cover sheet of any drawings I produced, specifically stating that I was an unlicensed designer practicing within the restrictions of Section 5537.
You don’t need to be registered to design single family (wood frame) homes. You simply cannot claim to provide “architectural” services, refer to the term architecture, arch, or anything that can be remotely confused with architecture.
What is soft story retrofitting? It sounds structural..
Retrofits to buildings with first-floor parking or otherwise minimalist structure. Usually seismic.
https://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/structural/soft-story-seismic-retrofitting.htm
I've been hearing soft-story recently (like only in the last 2 weeks) by some clients and my boss/owner. It seems like it's the new buzzword for interior design work, fit-out, etc.
I always assumed it meant retail fit-up.
You're probably right. the fit-out (Up in Canada?) in question was retail.
I thought "soft story retrofitting" traditionally refers to garages and ground floor entry levels on a multi-story building. At least that makes sense in San Francisco where these soft stories literally lacked the proper shear resistance and collapsed in past earthquakes.