Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1886-05-08
OUR UNRENTED HOUSES.
an UNUSUALLY LAR0E NUNBEk RON
rms SEASON OF THE YkAR.
iuteryieu Ing the Real Estate Agents ss TO the
Nu,nber OF Unren,ed Houses that Lan-
caster Now Io-sesses-is the CITY
suffering from Ov.r-BuiidIng'

Suffering from oStr-buttdtbE
Recently the iSTELIIuENCER gave an ac-
count of the extensive building operations
that are In progress in this city, illustrating
how Lancaster is keeping its best foot front
in the march of progress There IL perhaps
no other city Of like sizs III III" state, anu
| probably not In the whole country, ust
more evenly and substantially adds 10 its
| building plant year by year than Lancaster
Its many builders are men Of large ideas,
who are sagacious enough to see that city
well supplied with dwellings aud business
| houses, and with previous commercial
prosperity founded on solid rock, must
eventually attract within its HINTS the thou
| sands OF wanderers from other places who
| are In search OF comfortable livings at reason
| able rates.
For Lancaster IL a city where rents are
| surprisingly cheap. For so a month a man
may secure a good modern house IN n desi-
| rahle locality with yard room enough TO
hoalthiuily rear n growing family. Ana u
hs ~ willing To go 9 u month bettor than
| this, he can frequently obtain all the latest
| sanitary accommodations, that even the
wealthie-t OF those who lived a few genera
| tons ago never permitted themselves I" con
template The number ~! dwelling houses
| in this city which bring more Than TINS later
figure are few and far between. Those whose
tastes call for moro elaborate dwellings than
will rent for 500 u year usually own thor
places of residence.
TIIE rSRESTED HOUSES.
Interviews with number Of prominent
real estate agents ot Lancaster by an INTEL
LIGESCER reporter elected the fact that
there are au unusually large number of un-
rented houses here at tho present time.
Biusman & Barns report - dwellings IN
their hands awaiting tenants. and stores
aud offices unoccupied. Heretofore at this
season of the wear, they say that they had
practically none tO rent tho average rent
asked for these untenauted houses ~ SEQ
year. They assert that they have no trouble
about renting houses where the rent IL under
Sl0a month, but above that tgnre The ap-
plcants diminish in very rapid ratio.
At Allan \. Herr & Co.'S the number oi
dwellings to ront il "a, chiefly residences of
some little pretonsions. Two stores anu
offices are without occupants. John III.
Metzier has dwellings and no stores, and
Henry ShubeTt stands ready to give any
caller tho choice of six houses in his hands
that are now standing idle. These real
estate men also agree with Bausnian "
Burns that this April has been unusually
dull In the house renting business.
At jeremiah Rife's real estate agency
eight unSscupiod dwellings were reported ut
present while last year none were on the
books at this time. Another fact that goes
| 10 show the same conclusion as to tho unusu-
| ally large number Ot uurented houses IN the
| city just now, IL that at the recent appeals
| from water rent, sixty-three dwellings were
| exempted from water taxes because they
| were nntcuanted.
| While the above opinions represent a
| goody share of city real estate, they, oi
| course, do not cover tho many houses that
| are rented by their individual owners. ~
| a matter of fact, these embrace tho largest
| class. For there are in Lancaster many small
| property owners who will endeaVor 10 save
| the real estate agents commission by look
| ing after their own renting. The experiment
| frequently proves rather costly, hut they do
| il. walk through the town Will therefore
| show that the figures given 10y the real estate
| men must be considerably more than
doubled to arrive at AN approximate number
| al tho umTeUtet houses III our midst.
IS IT \ OOOD SIUNH
The quory may suggest itself: Is this a
| healthy condition for our city, And for lis
proper answer two facts must be ascertained.
| First, whether the city is losing any OF its
| population and second, whether the town
| in being oyerhu To tho first query none
| will attempt Ia return an affirmative reply,
| for 1t is patent fact that the city - becoming
more densely populated every year, ana the
| increment il receives Is of the most perinan
| ent character, embracing frequently county
| citi2ens of means who desire Ia pass the
| remainder OF their days in the hlissiul pos
session of its many advantages as home
| As Ia the second question there will bt
many unrented houses at the present time
wuuid seem to establish that the building
supply has exceeded the demand. But 4
| careful Investigation will probably lead T.
| the conclusion that the situation this year Is
| OF only q sporadic character. The genera
| depression OF business has no doubt had the
| etIoCt OF driving some from dear tn cheaper
| homes, and with the first rising OF the on
coming wave OF prosperity, the situation wil
readiust itself. As the real estate agents tel
| us, there il no trouble about the renting q
small houses, the supply not beng aole I
| keep pace with the demand. TINS - I'll
best evidence that Lancastor's working
, | pOpulatiOn il growing steadily. Ana Wit
that as "A basis, the city's steady growth io
the future may bs safely promised.
! WHY SMALL RENTS ARE IN BIG DEMAND
The big reason why houses with sma
rents are in such universal demand is thi
I | Lancaster has few wage-workers who al
| | highly paid. The average salary OF til
employe of this town is not more than $40
, week. Old anh trusted clerks, conhdenti'
, | book keepers and others occupying clo'
4 | hiucary relations with their employers ma
, | hero aud there receive more than In
i | amount OF wages but they are rare instance
| | II a man has 500 year, and Is paying on
= fifth Of it Tor rent, II is quite an item IN h
| pocket, il he il ablG to secure his rent l,
: seven dollars month. How he manages
- CIOthe his children, provide food Tor h
family ctc., on tho balance is one OF tho
h mysteries that will doubtless he cleared l
4 on the Day of Judgment, but not before
,, The increased building that ls under wf
and in contemplation must Tor a time ha'
(, the inevitable tendency Of keeping rem
y down to their present low figure, II it does
still further reduce them. But this in Il
m nature of things can only be temporar
n | When Lancaster, with all its advantages
"a proximity to the great business centres
if the country, the county seat of the richt
Ia farming county in the United States, uns,
al passed and cheap produce markets, extraoI
n. mary heathGulneSs and efficient administ
tion of municipal affairs, has besides the
n | tho cheapest OF rents, II must inevltat
ot | draw Ia itself an ever Increasing CitiHensl
"a that will gain for 1t added luslre as one
n. Pennsylvauia's sOl,iest and most prosr,
"a | siye cities.
M
Ol
HIbIe Ground for ProhihitIoniais