After December’s slightly promising bounce back, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index dropped again—quite considerably—in January. The economic indicator reported a measly 43.8 for the first month of 2026, a notable drop from December’s 47.1.
It appears the year is off to a sluggish start, as new project inquiries also declined, after steadily increasing for much of 2025.
Last month, the AIA shared news that its long-time chief economist Kermit Baker is retiring and passing the torch to Richard Branch. Branch, following in Baker’s stead, shared an optimistic outlook of the current economic conditions, as they relate to the architecture industry.
In a statement Branch remarked that the “overall economic conditions remain subdued.” And then proceeded to comment on recent employment data for the industry–both construction jobs and architectural services are up.
“Construction employment was a bright spot, adding 33,000 jobs, including 25,000 in nonresidential specialty trades, signaling a positive shift after stagnant growth last year,” Branch said. “Architectural services also showed resilience, with a net gain of 1,300 positions in 2025 despite early declines and a slight dip in December.”
From a regional standpoint, the Midwest’s streak of increasing billings waned alongside the West and the historically strong Northeast; the region dropped to a score of 46.3. In January, the South fared best, reporting increased billings as indicated by its score of 50.2.
In the sector breakdown, firms specializing in multifamily residential reported minimal declines in billings, as indicated by the 48.4 score. In its report, the AIA made note of this, saying “Business conditions remained challenging across all specializations, with multifamily residential firms seeing a slower rate of decline but no billings growth since mid-2022.”
Here’s to hoping January’s slow start turns around.
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