Well Tom, I cited a range of 5-8%. Your choose the 8% to make your argument, giving the architects a fee of a little over $2 million.  How about I use the 5% figure to respond, giving the architects about $1.3 million in fees. $1.3-$2 million, in my opinion is not “..architects making millions..”. And besides, as the project price goes up the architects fee (%) goes down.

From that $1.3-$2 million the architects have to pay their rent (or mortgage), the utility bills, the payroll of the staff working in the project.  

And since most architectural firms don’t have engineers on staff, they hire the structural, mechanical, electrical, and civil, engineers that are needed as consultants. And pay them from that $1.3-$2 million. And there are others, such as landscape architects, interior designers and probably more.

con't