Why do architects make so little money?

Answer 1

I agree with the first answer.  I have a Masters in Architecture and over twenty years experience and I have never made over about U$66k a year here in the South.  Ever.  I am self employed now, and everyone thinks we can produce contract documents for a building for a few hundred dollars.  If I submit a fee proposal with enough to cover a reasonable professional salary plus overhead and profit, most of the time it gets beaten down to WalMart wages, or I don't get the work at all.  And at the same time, municipalities and building codes are demanding more and more of our time, for which it's almost impossible to get compensated.

Answer 2

The reason architects earn so little, quite simply, is architects themselves.  First, a qualifier..I am an architect.  First, and most importantly, I feel we do far too much work for free.  We do this because if we don't, another architect will.  It is a nasty cycle of tripping over ourselves, all in the name of getting work.  Often, so much initial concept design work is virtually given away to developers.  If the projects get built, these developers reap huge profits.  If the project dies, the architect is stuck with unpaid bills.

An often overlooked point is our lack of professional attire.  While this may seem petty, think about it this way, while bankers, lawyers, and other high earners often where suits, or at the very least shirt and jacket, take a walk around any design studio and you will see hipsters in jeans, tennis shoes, and the like.  I get it, we're creatives.  I know, I'm the same way.  However, it is hard for clients to take us seriously when they see us this way.  Clients don't really understand what it is we do.  

After seven years of school, a masters degree, and 5 years experience, a typical architect will MAYBE earn (all in USD) 60,000 to 70,000 per year.  Maybe.  I know architects earning less than 40,000 per year, with Masters Degrees.  Some young architects actually work for 25,000 or less, just to work in well-known design ateliers.  Secretaries working for financial institutions earn upwards of 80,000 annually.  I know executive assistants earning 6 figures.