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Architecture,bussiness& big bucks?


archkre
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Sorry, but on a second thought what I mean is "how to make $$$$$$ in

Architecture & related"

I don't need no lousy job,had enough!

No more living from paycheck to paycheck

Architecture,Bussiness & Money ,tha is the formula!

But how..., any ideas?

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Do you have your NCARB license?
What kind of question is that?

With all due respect,my original post is universally valid,if you are Ncarb,AIA,FBI,YMCA,JCC,IRS,IRA,etc has anything to do with it!

I never heard of anybody getting rich out of perspiration, besides sport people like Hulk Hogan,Mr. McMahon, Sampras,Dan Marino,etc . I think that concept does not apply to Architecture!

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this isn't exactly a field (rendering or architecture) known for making people rich. the most notorious architects often are scraping by, just hoping to pay there employees. if you want to get rich in architecture, go work for a large established firm, and start climbing the ladder. ...or become a developer. it is doubtful that you will ever become rich in arch illustration. you can make a reasonable living, but you probably will not become rich.

 

like any field, it is going to be who you know if you want to make money.

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Statistically, if you look at the majority of the famous architects practicing today (and no doubt in the past, although that I don't know for sure), you will see that they all

 

1. Were very talented

2. Worked their a**es off

3. Came from a wealthy family (it's everywhere - look at Mick Jagger!) and/or

4. Is married to someone that has a high paying job

 

Those are the ingredients, probably in that order. If you don't have them, then you have to look at the big number 5 - LUCK!

 

There's plenty to go around, but it does become like gambling. The more you play, the better your odds of winning, but the greater your odds of losing. You just gotta weigh each risk against its reward.

 

You can also see why most people stay with the paycheck to paycheck - it's relatively safe.

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Originally posted by archkre:

quote:
Do you have your NCARB license?
What kind of question is that?

With all due respect,my original post is universally valid,if you are Ncarb,AIA,FBI,YMCA,JCC,IRS,IRA,etc has anything to do with it!

It has a lot to do with it. If you do not have your NCARB license (or state professional license), you are just a drafter - not an architect. Don't take this personally! The business of architecture is a top-down business model universally in the US. If you do not have NCARB, you do not have reciprocity with other states which means you are restricted to local state opportunities. If you do not have a state license, you cannot even do that and are restricted to drafting. In architecture, your compensation is relative to the seal on the drawings. If it isn't your seal, your not getting paid for the drawings plain and simple. The architect that seals the drawings also accepts the professional liability if anything goes wrong which, in turn, justifies the fee.

 

Of the organizations in your reply, only NCARB has any say in how you legally conduct business in the field of architecture so, yes, it is a valid question and you asked specifically about how to make money in architecture - not how to make money in any of the other organizations you listed.

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What are you talking about?

Architecture goes far beyond burocracy!

According to your line of thinking, C.Pelli in "Petronas towers",SOM in the Hong Hong skyscraper,Daniel Liebeskind in the reconstruction

of Twin Towers,and many other masterpieces were

done by mere "draftsmen".

Can't belive that...

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I think the licensure is relative to what you want to accomplish.

 

I don't have my license, and don't care too much if I ever do, but I will design architecture and get it built. All I need is a 'draftsman' with a license (and there are plenty), or an engineer. I consider myself a 'designer', first and foremost. We could go on about the term 'architect' and it's legal ramifications, but I feel that's a ridiculous topic.

If you want to build and work for yourself, it would be beneficial, but I know of no firm that increases pay due to licensure - pay increases are based on performance and contribution.

 

 

Smart, work, but it also must be 'hard'. Most people would think that 'smart' would be 'hard'. But you can be the smartest person out there with a business plan that is excellent and without the 'luck', or right place right time, then it will all be just a waste of time. It happens everyday, on both sides.

 

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

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I don't have my license, and don't care too much if I ever do, but I will design architecture and get it built. All I need is a 'draftsman' with a license (and there are plenty), or an engineer.
MBR,

 

I wouldn't recommend that you publicly advertise your approach, because it's simply illegal. I certainly have no patience for bureacracy, and neither NCARB or AIA membership are required in order to practice architecture (I personally think they are overrated and certainly not worth the price of admission to me). And don't get me started on the ARE exam and the way it's administered. But a license in the state where you work is required, and paying someone to stamp your plans doesn't solve this problem.

 

Jack

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It's only illegal if you advertise yourself as an architect (registered, AIA license). I know plenty of architects (designers) who design without lisences.. As long as you have someone who signs and seals the plans for building permit you are fine (engineer or architect).

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"It's only illegal if you advertise yourself as an architect (registered, AIA license). I know plenty of architects (designers) who design without lisences.. As long as you have someone who signs and seals the plans for building permit you are fine (engineer or architect)"

 

 

Thats a pretty typical approach. You only need to have a lic. for very specific jobs and certain gov't jobs otherwise a wet stamp/sig will do. However you cannot call yourself an architect without a lic.

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exactly....

 

For example in the phone book, if you list your business as Joe Smoe Architects you better have someone with an NCARB license otherwise you're in trouble. But if you list it as Bobby's Architectural Designs you are fine. Just don't put AIA certified. I knew someone ehre in town that was ratted out by a competing firm b/c they had no registered architects and they were advertising as such. The AIA sent the offending firm a letter and charged them some ridiculous amount of money and threatened litigation if they did not change their buisness name. Goes to show you....

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I am well aware of the correct term, trust me. I simply stated that I 'design architecture', not that I am an 'architect'. It's stupid, imho. It's just a legality to try and elevate the profession, make money, etc., etc. I went to school for 7 years to be an architect (at too very good schools), I should be able to call myself one if I so choose!!

 

But grumblings aside, I simply call myself what someone would understand. Here, I call myself an 'architectural designer', but to friends I call myself, well...

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I don't give a damn about licenses,I already have

enough(license as "Architect of the King of Spain, Don Juan Carlos de Borbon y Borbon"entitleing me to work as you know in all the European Community,licenses from diferent countries in Southamerica,etc.

That's what I mean by "International man of Architecture".

I do not want to collect more licenses,have enough.

I have to pay big $$$$ for these licenses and belive me ,I still don't see where the advantage is!

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Originally posted by mbr:

I am well aware of the correct term, trust me. I simply stated that I 'design architecture', not that I am an 'architect'. It's stupid, imho. It's just a legality to try and elevate the profession, make money, etc., etc. I went to school for 7 years to be an architect (at too very good schools), I should be able to call myself one if I so choose!!

 

But grumblings aside, I simply call myself what someone would understand. Here, I call myself an 'architectural designer', but to friends I call myself, well...

:) I agree with you here...just don't wnt to see you get nailed for something innocent enough. I don't know if I'll ever sit for the ARE myself. Happy designing.

 

Xavier

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The AIA sent the offending firm a letter and charged them some ridiculous amount of money and threatened litigation if they did not change their buisness name. Goes to show you....
Goes to show you what the AIA is good for. Teamsters in suits. At least the Teamsters can get their members a bloody contract. The AIA is good at almost NOTHING that is of actual benefit to the profession of architecture--unless elitism is the future for design professionals.

 

As a renderer I get pretty steamed to see renderings used un-attributed in the press. But you would think that the AIA would be the exception? Naw, in their magazine, Oculus, they run renderings all the time and they couldn't be bothered giving a credit to the renderer. The joke is that I have seen seen them run work from renderers that are registered architects, even one that is a fellow, FAIA, without their name. The message: you are not a true architect when you draw, just when you stamp CDs.

 

So that is the future for all you architects under the loving fist of the AIA.

 

Boy, you get some people wound up and they just go bonkers on you! Sorry for the rant.

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At the risk of sounding like a stuffy old lawyer type, which I am definitely not, I want to clarify a few points.

 

The law doesn't care as much about what you call yourself (i.e. "architect," "building designer", etc.) as what you actually do. If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck. So if you provide "architectural services" you need to be a licensed architect, or work for a licensed firm. If what you're doing qualifies as interior design, then you're fine. Would it be OK for someone to practice medicine without a license as long as he called himself a "physical health engineer" instead of an M.D.?

 

Plan stamping, the practice of paying someone to stamp your drawings, is illegal and puts both you and the plan stamper at risk. The idea is that the person stamping the drawings has to have close supervision of the execution of the drawings. I know it happens all the time, but it can get you in to trouble.

 

Also, you do NOT need to join the AIA or NCARB to be a licensed architect in the US. You do need to pass the ARE and pay for a license in the state where you practice. NCARB's purpose is to make it easier (for a price) to transfer your license to other states.

 

Having said all this, I often find myself feeling like a libertarian (i.e. no government regulation and everyone fends for themselves) when it comes to architecture, especially when I have to deal with the bloody building department who want me to fill out a form in black ink instead of blue ink. Becoming licensed is no guarantee that someone is a competent, thoughful, or sensitive designer. But it's the only practical way the public (i.e. a client) can know if they're dealing with someone who can meet their needs.

 

Again, my purpose in writing this is not to make judgements on anyone's professional abilities, just to clear up some facts and help avoid exactly the kind of bureaucratic nightmares that we all hate.

 

Jack

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