Bde Architecture
BDE Architecture is a San Francisco-based multifamily architecture firm founded in 1988, with offices in San Francisco, San Diego, and Chicago. It serves residential developers — for-profit and nonprofit — with executive architect, project design, and historic preservation services across the western United States, supported by approximately 70 staff.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1988
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Bde Architecture does
BDE Architecture is a San Francisco-based architectural firm founded in 1988 that specializes in multifamily residential design across the income spectrum — from luxury condominiums to affordable, workforce, and SRO housing. The firm operates three offices (San Francisco as headquarters, San Diego, and Chicago) and is staffed by approximately 70 architects, designers, principals, and support personnel. Its project footprint covers California, Nevada, and Oregon, with unit counts ranging from small (25-unit) townhome developments to large (1,000+ unit) transit-oriented workforce housing.
BDE delivers full-service architectural design as executive architect or architect of record, providing services through the standard phases of schematic design, design development, construction documentation, bidding, and construction administration. The firm has technical expertise across multiple building construction types, including Type I concrete podium, Type III wood-frame, and mixed-use typologies. It frequently partners with external design architects — Heller Manus, Seidel Holzman, Aidlin Darling Design, Solomon Cordwell Buenz, and Hart Howerton — where the design partner provides design vision and BDE executes technical delivery. A separate historic preservation and restoration practice operates alongside the ground-up multifamily work.
The firm is privately held and founder-led (Jonathan Ennis, Founding Principal). Revenue is generated through professional services fees paid by real estate developers on a project-by-project basis, with pricing determined by project scope, complexity, and construction type; no publicly disclosed standard rates exist. Named institutional clients include Panoramic Interests, Maximus, Wilson Meany, Greystar, Wood Partners, Lennar Urban, Sares Regis, Satellite Affordable Housing Associates, and Eden Housing, spanning for-profit and nonprofit developers of luxury, market-rate, and affordable housing.
Bde Architecture firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bde Architecture
- Legal name
- BDE Architecture
- Website
- https://bdearch.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1988
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- BDE Architecture is a San Francisco-based multifamily architecture firm founded in 1988, with offices in San Francisco, San Diego, and Chicago. It serves residential developers — for-profit and nonprofit — with executive architect, project design, and historic preservation services across the western United States, supported by approximately 70 staff.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bde Architecture industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Multifamily Architectural Services
- NAICS
- Architectural Services (54131), Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (23622)
- SIC
- General Bldg Contractors - Residential Bldgs (1520)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)
Keywords
Where Bde Architecture is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Bde Architecture business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Architectural Design Services: Professional fees for architectural services including schematic design, design development, construction documentation, bidding, and construction administration phases on multifamily residential projects.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Bde Architecture product offering
Product offeringCore offering
BDE Architecture provides full-service architectural design for multifamily residential developments, operating as architect of record or executive architect across all five standard design phases (schematic design, design development, construction documentation, bidding, construction administration). The firm's portfolio spans luxury condominiums, market-rate apartments, affordable housing communities, mixed-use developments, and historic preservation/restoration projects, with deep expertise across multiple construction types including Type I concrete podium and Type III wood-frame construction.
Product overview
BDE Architecture is a multifamily architecture firm founded in 1988 that offers a comprehensive portfolio of architectural services centered on residential developments. The firm's core offerings span luxury condominiums, market-rate and affordable multifamily housing, and mixed-use developments with retail and commercial components. BDE serves as executive architect on projects, providing full-service design from schematic design through construction administration. The firm also offers historic preservation and restoration services. Projects are located primarily in California (San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, Chicago) with select projects in Nevada and Oregon.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Multifamily Architecture Services Full-service architectural design and execution for multifamily residential developments, including luxury condominiums, market-rate apartments, and mixed-use projects. The firm operates as architect of record across schematic design, design development, construction documentation, bidding, and construction administration phases.
- Affordable Housing Architecture Specialized architectural services for affordable housing communities, including SRO units, workforce housing, and housing targeting 30%-50% AMI income levels, with sustainable design and transit-oriented development considerations.
- Mixed-Use Development Design Architectural services integrating residential, retail, commercial, and office spaces in unified developments, often incorporating transit-oriented design elements and sustainable architecture principles.
- Executive Architect Services BDE leads as executive architect on projects collaborating with design architects such as Heller Manus, Seidel Holzman, Solomon Cordwell Buenz, and Aidlin Darling Design, providing design services during Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Documentation, Bidding, and Construction Administration phases.
- Historic Preservation & Restoration Historical preservation architectural services including facade restoration, seismic upgrades, ADA compliance, and tenant improvements for heritage buildings such as the Old Oakland restoration.
Companies that use Bde Architecture
Customer profileNamed customers16 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Bde Architecture technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Bde Architecture partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.
- GreystarcoreGreystar is a premier residential real estate development firm for which BDE serves as architect of record on the Lume project in Menlo Park, CA (441 units).
- Peter Sullivan & AssociatescoreBDE served as project architect for 15 years on the Old Oakland historic restoration project (The Arlington), providing architectural services for office/retail tenant improvements, historic facade restoration, seismic upgrades, and ADA compliance.
- Heller ManusstrategicDesign architect collaboration on Lume and Vasara projects where Heller Manus serves as design architect and BDE as architect of record.
- Seidel HolzmanstrategicDesign architect collaboration on One East Julian project where Seidel Holzman serves as design architect and BDE as architect of record.
- Solomon Cordwell BuenzstrategicDesign architect collaboration on Cityspaces 500 project where Solomon Cordwell Buenz serves as design architect and BDE provides architectural services.
- Hart HowertonstrategicDesign collaboration on Yerba Buena Island Residences where Hart Howerton provides design and Meyer Davis provides interior design, with BDE as executive architect.
- Aidlin Darling DesignstrategicDesign architect on Yerba Buena Island Clubhouse project where Aidlin Darling Design serves as designer and BDE as executive architect.
- Panoramic InterestscorePanoramic Interests is the client for Cityspaces 500 workforce housing project adjacent to West Oakland BART station (1,032 units).
- Regis Homes of CaliforniacoreRegis Homes of California is the client for One East Julian project (43 units) in San Jose.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Bde Architecture competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with multifamily and mixed-use practices among many other building types. Competes for large multifamily commissions with broader integrated services including interiors, master planning, and branded environments.
- WATG: International architecture firm with residential and hospitality practices including multifamily and mixed-use. Competes for premium multifamily commissions with design-forward positioning, particularly in urban and resort markets.
Direct peers
- KTGY: Architecture and planning firm specializing in multifamily residential, mixed-use, and housing across the US. Directly comparable in product type (market-rate and affordable multifamily), client base (national developers), and West Coast roots.
- Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB): National architecture firm with deep multifamily residential practice across condos, rentals, and mixed-use developments. BDE has served as executive architect on projects where SCB served as design architect, making them direct collaborators and competitors in the same multifamily niche.
- David Baker Architects: San Francisco-based architecture firm with strong multifamily residential and affordable housing practice. Comparable in geography, product mix (especially affordable and mixed-income housing), and developer client base.
- Heller Manus Architects: San Francisco architecture firm with multifamily residential and mixed-use expertise. BDE has collaborated with Heller Manus on the Lume and Vasara projects — direct peer in market and product type.
- Steinberg Hart: California-headquartered architecture firm with significant multifamily residential, mixed-use, and TOD portfolio across the western US. Comparable scale and developer client overlap.
- AO (Architecture Orange): Orange County-based multifamily architecture firm with deep expertise in market-rate and affordable housing, podium and wrap construction. Directly competes for the same Southern California developer clients.
- KFA Architecture: Southern California multifamily architecture firm specializing in podium, wrap, garden-style, and mixed-use projects. Direct competitor for California multifamily developer clients with similar project type focus.
- TCA Architects: California-based architecture firm focused on multifamily residential, mixed-use, and student housing. Overlapping geography (West Coast) and product category (multifamily housing for institutional and private developers).
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Bde Architecture financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bde Architecture leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Bde Architecture funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bde Architecture M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bde Architecture
What does Bde Architecture do?
BDE Architecture provides full-service architectural design for multifamily residential developments, operating as architect of record or executive architect across all five standard design phases (schematic design, design development, construction documentation, bidding, construction administration). The firm's portfolio spans luxury condominiums, market-rate apartments, affordable housing communities, mixed-use developments, and historic preservation/restoration projects, with deep expertise across multiple construction types including Type I concrete podium and Type III wood-frame construction.
Is Bde Architecture a public or private company?
Bde Architecture is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Bde Architecture founded?
Bde Architecture was founded in 1988. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Bde Architecture based?
Bde Architecture is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Bde Architecture make money?
One revenue line is on record: architectural Design Services.
Who are Bde Architecture's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Perkins&Will and WATG. Direct peers are KTGY, Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB), David Baker Architects, Heller Manus Architects, Steinberg Hart, AO (Architecture Orange), KFA Architecture and TCA Architects.
Does Bde Architecture have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bde Architecture.
What industry is Bde Architecture in?
Bde Architecture's product category is Multifamily Architectural Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAA, Architectural Design Services. Its NAICS code is 54131 and its SIC code is 1520.