In its April Architecture Billings Index, the AIA shared that billings have dropped “in 28 out of the past 31 months.” This last month was no exception: April reported a score of 43.2, a decrease from March’s 44.1—any number below 50 indicates a decrease in billings from the previous month. Uncertain economic conditions have undoubtedly contributed to these latest declines, something that AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker remarked on a statement, included in this month’s report. “Uncertainty as to the economic outlook continues to hold back progress on new construction projects,” Baker said. Baker remained optimistic, however, sharing that firms seem to be retaining staff and continuing to have steady work on their plates. “Despite the slowdown in billing activity, architecture firms continue to navigate this business cycle quite effectively, as staffing at firms remains relatively stable and project backlogs are holding up better than expected,” he added. The AIA included “resources to help architects successfully navigate an uncertain economy” in its April report. It shared past ABI data, the AIA Consensus Construction Forecast, the AIA Business of Architecture Firm Survey Report, and other relevant industry data. In addition to the national ABI, the index for new project inquiries and the value of design contracts also continues to dip with each passing month. Regionally, all parts of the country are reporting drops in billings, with the Northeast still the lowest at 40.2. The South remains the region with the lowest rate of decline, and highest score, reporting 46.2 for April, a drop from March’s 48.3. Firms specializing in more than one typology seem to be faring the best in terms of declined billings, with a score of 47.6 for April. It remains a waiting game to see how the economy will go on. At its meeting last month, the Federal Reserve opted again to leave interest rates be, presumably to see what happens as the tariffs take hold, and unemployment remains relatively low. #april #architecture #billings #index #reports