Firms Moving Beyond Real Estate Development; Most Clients Interested in Sustainability WASHINGTON, April 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Despite the continued drop in the real estate market, the majority of landscape architects remained busy in the first quarter of 2008, according to the latest Business Quarterly survey by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA). Fifty-five percent of respondents described their billable hours as average or above in Q1 2008, and 53 percent reported average or above inquiries during the same period. Additionally, 38 percent plan to hire in the Q2 2008--unchanged from the previous quarterly survey. "While the majority of firms reported steady or increased work, the housing troubles have certainly slowed some segments of the market--especially major real estate developments," said Nancy Somerville, Executive Vice President and CEO of ASLA. "Landscape architecture firms have turned to high-end residential work, commercial development, and public sector projects to mitigate most of the slowdown from the housing market."
