forty seven was one of the best years in metropolitans history the company's financial position with exxon more metropolitan policy holders than ever before enjoyed the blessings of life  investments the company played a bigger role than in any preceding year and helping keep the wheels of industry turning provide jobs and homes and maintain high standards of living  program of health education was expanded helping more people to keep to live longer happier lives the death rate among policyholders and nineteen forty seven kept on time alone for the year was not without its problems insurance costs were higher because of lower interest rates and because of the prevalent increase in the cost of goods and services in nineteen forty million dollars forty one million five hundred thousand more than and nineteen forty six and a gain of one hundred thirty eight million over the figure five years ago and nine hundred forty two in the past ten years the company's payments to powerset holders and beneficiaries totaled five billion nine hundred million dollars a lot of money that went to a lot of people all over the united states and canada money that helped lighten financial burden hope for the first to help keep many homes together and fulfill plans and  needs in the seventy's three million seven hundred thousand dollars paid last year in cash that is a power assist help supply and maybe up farms to many families whole for one reason or another cast in their policies there was a great difference between the volume of surrender value of payments and nine hundred forty seven as compared with those of nine hundred thirty three while our insurance in force in nineteen forty seven as and nineteen thirty three the surrender payments amounted to less than one third as might the upward trend and evidence paid to metropolitan policy holders over the years reflecting growth in the amount of spouse and hundreds of thousands of people it represented only a part of the company's responsibility to its policy holders and beneficiaries years to come the law recognizes the necessity of such reserves and requires that they be maintained these reserves price pons and process of payment to policyholders and beneficiaries together eighteen nineteen or a star made economic weather so it is a depression in the thirt put money into investments of a speculator nature so common stocks for example but metropolitans dollars are working for our policy holders they're benefiting all of us helping provide jobs and the as men during the war years since opposing the war metropolitans new investments have gone increasingly to help meet the needs of industry and the community just as they were doing before the war the metropolitan has helped provide productive enterprises with tools and facilitators through the investment of the company's punt last year we put nine hundred fifty eight million dollars into such investments refunding operations on the part to some securities which had been issued in preceding years at the end of nineteen forty seven marlin tilbury and six hundred million dollars were helping in the expansion and further development our maintenance productive techniques and enterprises policyholders realize that each of the tens of thousands of concerns are individuals using metropolitans investment fund i really working for them the address damaris pay the money is helping to reduce the cost of insurance policy holders without it premiums would have to be substantially higher the some of the plants and which metropolitan made investments last year to help cornish power light and heat to meet the nation's need electricity natural and artificial gas the telephone and other  million dollars of metropolitan assets were helping in the vital task of transporting passengers and bringing the necessities of life from mines farms forests and factories to people throughout the united states and canada hundred forty seven the company continued to help meet the national need for housing for individuals and for business and industry markets loans made last year on saturday and farm properties total more than two hundred twenty one million dollars bringing the total outstanding at the year's close to more than nine hundred sixty four million this amount eight hundred seventy eight million dollars more than a set of properties and eighty six million dollars in farm properties during the depression years the metropolitan like other financial institutions was forced to take over a large number of properties to safeguard its investment six thousand five hundred and twenty eight farms many of these properties were in around condition producing little or no income to meet the situation metropolitan widely acclaimed as the program progressed properties were disposed of as rapidly as possible and nineteen forty seven the last of the ten thousand four hundred fourteen farms which had been acquired as a result of the depression was so set in properties and sold at the end of the year numbered only forty two in the midst of a previous housing shortage in nineteen twenty two metropolitan undertook an experimental basis its first housing project in the borough of queens new york said it was the background of this experience the company a nineteen thirty nine started construction a fire tester in new york city the largest housing project ever built in the united states that's most followed by another project park fare fact just outside of washington d c which helped me time a couple wartime housing shortage in the nation's capital as this world saw many of them glowing here were seventy five years old or more eight thousand seven hundred thirty five families will find here attractive comfortable homes with a maximum of sunlight and air and modern rental tour other new metropolitan housing project will have an investment in housing of about three hundred million dollars and a total of more than one hundred thirty thousand people will be housed in attractive modern metropolitan apartments as everyone knows the entrance traits that can be earned on invested funds have declined steadily over a period of years in the late nineteen twenty s metropolitan earned an average net interest return of more than five percent since then following the general trend interest rates on the company's investments have dropped to substantially lower levels during nineteen forty seven the average net interest earned two point ninety four percent compared with three point one percent in nineteen forty six and it is encouraging to note that the average rate of interest at which new investments in securities were made for the first time in recent years turn slightly upward during the last part of nineteen forty seven and it's entirely possible that the low point has not been passed and a gradual improvement in the over all interest earnings may be forthcoming pederast earnings last year contributed more than two hundred thirty four million dollars to the company's income but if the rate of interest earned in nineteen twenty nine had prevailed last year already come in nineteen forty seven would have been metropolitans income has received from two sources first premiums and other families from policyholders and second earnings on investments in nine hundred forty seven the company is income amounted to nearly one billion four hundred million dollars out of this income more than one billion one hundred sixty million dollars came from policyholders and about two hundred thirty five million dollars from earnings on the company's investment obligations total of one million one hundred fifty million dollars were paid or services for the benefit of policyholders and beneficiaries including about five million dollars for health and  remainder more than two hundred four million dollars was used to provide the necessary services which metropolitan policy holders expect and to which they are entitled