Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-09
RENTS RISE RAPIDLY.
Tenants of Business Houses Whose
Expenses Are on the Jump.
DEMAND GREATER THAN SUPPLY.
No Way to Meet the Daily Call for Medium
Sized Tenements.
AN EARLY LOOK ABOUT FOR NEW HOMES

houses.
One is that there will be probable ad-
vance in the rates for small houses, and the
other is that the man who secures business
place will either have to purchase it out
right or pay an excessive price for it.
Every real estate dealer in the city is up
to his cars in business, while the season is
not yet fully opened when careworn women
and distracted men are to be encountered
chasing up and down leading and side
streets, in search of houses to shelter them.
Ordinarily this ordeal begins about Febru-
| ary l, but this year it is different. and
inquiries are already being quite freely
made.
BY far the most important feature of the
whole question, however, is the scarcity OF
business houses. During a conversation
with representative OF this paper yester-
day, Mr.. Baird, of the firm of Black &
Baird, said: ''There is an unusual scarcity
of business places in Pittsburg at the pres
ent time. We could rent % day if we had
them without any trouble at all, and to first
| class tenants.
ANXIOUS TO COME TO PITTsBURG.
1--WE have applications on our books that
were made over a year ago by people living
outside of this city, who are anxious to come
here and establish themselves in reliable
business. They are willing to pay fancy
prices for sites, but the truth is we cannot
secure them.
I'm addition to this demand, local capital
lists who are desirous of going into business
are already on the lookout, notwithstanG-
| ing that it is vet months ahead of the time
when leases expire. And all these persons
have splendid financial backing.
Now let me state some facts that will
give you an idea of the situation. A three
years lease on a business property of one OF
our tenants expires on April 1, 1891. The
| yearly;rental was So, 800. The party has
at Sc, 900 year, and was glad to get it at
! that figure. Another instance is that a
tenant who renews a lease that was made
| for S3, 900 year at S5, 800 per annum. l
| feel safe in saving that rates on this class Of
property will be 40 per cent higher for next
year than they were when the leases were
made, three, iour or five years ago, and the
demand is in excess of the supply. 10 my
mind this is one of the best possible proofs
of the growth and prosperity of Pittsburg' S
business interests"
RATES ON TENEMENT HOUSES.
elbow will the rates on tenement houses
compare with last year?"
Its little early to speak definitely on
this subject We serve notices on tenants
on January 1, and usually get reply any
where between then and February. l can
say, however, that there is already great
demand for small houses. The supply has
been increased considerably. during the
year, but it is not large enough yet, by any
means. l think there will be an advance In
the rents for this class of buildings. With
houses that rent rom $50 month up, the
case is somewhat different, as many of them
are rented for series ofyears."
"Will the advance in the price of natural
| gas cause tenants to ask TOR lower rates?''
II cannot say so to that, though of course
we would have preferred to see the price on
that fuel remain where it was. But there
will be 10 trouble in renting all the houses,
and particularly the smaller ones"
Petty & Co. stated that they could rent
all the small houses they had at an advance,
manv OF them at 50 a month. This applied
to houses that now rent from SIG to SIS a
| month.
DEMAND FOR SMALL HOUSES.
"While there had been great deal of
| building during the year, there was still
greater demand, particularly for four, five
and six-roomed buildings. Hundreds and
hundreds of families were forced to submit
to the Inconvenience of pooling issues and
renting buildings that would shelter two or
three of them, at the same time paying a
| big price for such accommodations. When
asked if the tenants of larger houses were
not advancing rates for single or double
rooms, on account of the increased cost of
natural gas, Mr.. Petty replied that they
were, but that this applied only to the down
town portion of the city.
Mr.. Chapman, OF the firm of Lee & Chap
man, said they could rent almost any num-
Der of small houses, say from S17 10 $50 a
month. He expected to see rates go up on
this kind of property, though one landlord
had told him that he preferred to keep re-
liable tenants at the present figures rather
than make any changes. The demand for
larger houses was not as great, however. as
might be expected. He said he had been
! irving 10 rent 10.room house on Allegheny
avenue, Allegheny, for six weeks, ana al
though 1t had been well advertised. he had
not vet found person who cared TO pay the
| price.
NOT THE KIND IN DEMAND.
He also spoke of the big block Of houses
recently erected on what might be called a
central street, that were not going very
rapidly because the great majority of people
who rent could not afford to pay the rates
| asked.
"What Pittsburg needs at the present
time" continued Mr.. Chapman. sis great
number of small houses. Thousands of
them could be rented almost in a day, pro-
vided they were at all conveniently located,
and to first-class people, who would almost
get on their bended knees TO secure them.
You have 10 idea of how great the demand
is for them. 1t certainly beats anything L
ever saw. How about business houses?
Why they are simply out of sight. The
demand could not be supplied for love or
money. know of two or three instances
of houses almost within 4 stones throw OF
this office where the rents have been ad-
vanced hundreds of dollars 4 year, and the
present occupants were glad enough to
renew their leases at that"
At W. A. Heron & Sons the same gen.
eral condition of affairs WAS reported, par
ticularly in regard to business places. They
were not prepared to say much about tene-
ment houses, but when it came to the first
named class, their experience was that OF
all other agents and dealers who were inter-
viewed on the subject; and quite a number
of them, in addition to the ones mentioned,
were seen.