Follow this tag to curate your own personalized Activity Stream and email alerts.
The data contained in the latest Architecture Billings Index (ABI) from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) shows a "considerable" decrease in the demand for design services across the industry in a sign that points to the arrival of a long-dreaded turndown for firms heading into... View full entry
Design projects involving the renovation, rehabilitation, extension, or preservation of existing buildings account for 48% of billings at U.S. architecture firms according to an AIA survey. The findings, which form part of the 2022 AIA Firm Survey: The Business of Architecture, continues a trend... View full entry
The latest analysis from the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) on the cost of direct damage to Ukraine's buildings and infrastructure since the beginning of the Russian military invasion of the country puts the estimate at $127 billion. The report shows the largest share (39.7%) of the surveyable... View full entry
The Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) continued to steadily rise in October, with a 9.6% boost to 199.7 from the revised September reading of 182.2. This increase was driven by a 13% and a 2.9% rise in the commercial building and institutional building components, respectively. As detailed by Dodge... View full entry
It’s the first time in the 20 years the AIA has collected this data that renovations have breached 50%. In 2005, toward the end of a pre-recession building boom, renovations made up approximately one-third of billings. That share has been increasing steadily since 2017, when it was 44.4%, up to 52% this year. Kermit Baker, the AIA’s chief economist, says that the last time the market for design services was so heavily weighted toward renovations was likely during the Great Depression. — Bloomberg
According to Baker, about 25% of renovation projects constitute interior remodels, while adaptive reuse schemes make up another quarter of those registered with the AIA. Just 3.8% are done in the interest of improved building energy performance, with a scant 1.6% being resiliency projects. The... View full entry
The latest data from the Dodge Construction Network (DCN) has revealed a 19% decline in the total number of construction starts for September, marking the second consecutive month in which declines were recorded following a 48% increase in July. The new seasonally adjusted annual rate is now $... View full entry
New data from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) September Architecture Billings Index (ABI) indicates an increase in the demand for design services for the 20th consecutive month as the industry continues its positive growth into the year's final quarter. For September, the ABI was at... View full entry
A leading economist in the AEC industry has warned that the United States' housing sector has entered a recession, with ramifications for homebuilding in the coming years. Robert Dietz, chief economist at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), made the comments at the National... View full entry
The latest Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) report indicates a sizable increase of 5.7% to a total of 183.2 for September, up from the revised 173.4 figure that was recorded in August. The Dodge Construction Network notes that this total falls within 5% of the DMI’s all-time high and was... View full entry
The disappearance of such affordable homes is central to the American housing crisis. The nation has a deepening shortage of housing. But, more specifically, there isn’t enough of this housing: small, no-frills homes that would give a family new to the country or a young couple with student debt a foothold to build equity. [...]
At the root is the math problem of putting — or keeping — a low-cost home on increasingly pricey land.
— The New York Times
America has a long history of gradually siphoning away architecture made for predominantly middle-class people (think pre-war buildings in Manhattan or Levittown tract housing on Long Island) and is now simply under-delivering what could otherwise be an equalizing force as a result of prevailing... View full entry
The latest Dodge Construction Network figures show a decline in construction starts by 9% after a July spike that was propelled mostly by the nonresidential and nonbuilding sectors. Total starts now stand at an adjusted annual rate of $1.25 trillion. The August dip was caused by a 36%... View full entry
National nonresidential construction spending has increased by a modest 0.8% in July, according to an analysis of government spending data from the U.S. Census Bureau by Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $... View full entry
The latest Dodge Momentum Index report from the Dodge Construction Network shows a slight drop of 1.2% from July’s revised record peak of 174.0, driven by declines in the institutional sector that were spurred on primarily by a decrease in healthcare projects when compared to last month... View full entry
According to CBRE's new 2022 U.S. Construction Cost Trends report, nationwide industry price levels have posted the largest increase in years, driven by labor shortages, inflation, supply chain disruptions, the ongoing impact of the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine. CBRE forecasts a... View full entry
According to a new report by apartment search website RentCafe, New York City is projected to deliver the most newly-built apartments in 2022, claiming the top position for the first time since 2018. Despite pandemic-induced setbacks in the last two years, New York City is expected to... View full entry
