Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-10-10

REAL ESTATE GOSSIP.
The Recsns Sale Of Street Property and tn
Significance.
| INDICATIONS THAT PRICES or crrY AND SUBURBAN
PROPERTY REMAIN F1RN-soNE FINE BUILD
! ING SITES AND WHAT HAVE BEEN PArp-orHKa
MATTERS.
nURING THE PAST WEEK A DEED WAS
~ placed on record transferring the prop
erty 1927 street There was nothing espe-
ciaify notable either In the price obtained or in
the character Of the property to dtstin guish
| this transfe, from others. The fact that it was
| located on F street gave il more than passing
interest especially to property owners. 1t has
| been some time since a sale was made of F
street property and there are 40 mark ed in
dicntions that the public is especially anxious
| to obtain possession OF holdings on that thor
| oughfare at this time. On the other hand, the
anxiety of owners to sell is not noticeable, and
so it may be said that honors are easy.
| Still, rs sales are regarded rs fixing the
gauge Of prices, if not Of values this
| particular transaction was very generally dis
| cussed. The property is more or less familiar,
as 1t was offered for sale At two 4 fferent times
| at public sale during the past spring. The lot
has frontage of "a feet 81 inches aud a depth
| Of 1i3 feet So inches to a 3G-foot alley Tie
improvement consists of a foQ--story and base
.nent building. At the first sale, which
held IN February last. S22 per square foot
was sbe highest bid received. while al the ne It
sale. In April, no bidder offered TO pay more
| then SO per square foot. The trustee, how
ever, refused to let the property go at
| these figures The sale. which is now
recorded. gives the consideration &c.,
coo. which is not quite s21 per
one OF the heirs OF the property. As compared
| with the prices asked and obtained for other
pieces OF property on this street dIriIg the
previous season, s2l per foot for inside prop
off in values. Men whose judgments are re-
| gsrded as sound as well conservative do not
take this view. They recognize that + street
! property, as well as that the side streets.
| and in fact throughout the entire business sec
| ton Of the city, has recently passed through a
season Of what might be termed
SPECULATIVE ACTIVITY
Prices reached point not only never before
! known, but hardly dreamed Of Not quite a
year ago S65 per square foot was paid for the
| ground at the northwest corner of 18th and
streets. Other pieces Of corner property were
| sold at prices close to $40 per square foot For
| inside property AZ high as $50 per foot was
paid. Two years prior to this SIS per square
Foot was the highest figure that ever had been
paid for street property of any kind. The
| recent advance in prices was, therefore, rapid
| and astonishing, and it is regarded as a strong
| evidence Of the substantial character of the
! movement tina. now, in q duh season. when
there ia no special demand for this class Of
property, such price as $2l per foot could
| be obtained.
! 1t is not claimed that there is any property
| on the market at this figure. In fact higher
! prices are asked. But it is thought that the
bottom prices for inside property may now be
considered to be above $40 per foot For cor
| ner property the conservative figure IL re-
| garded as from $50 to S35 per foot. There
have been no recent transactions in property
| on other streets in the business section. but
/ from the offers made it is evident that about
| the same ratio Of decline exists in prices as
compared with those prevailing last year. In
| the meantime however, improvements are be-
| ing made, and in a short time it is expected
that the market price will reach what is some
times regarded as the speculative prices OF last
| year and this year.
PRICES OF SUBURBAN PROPERTY.
There was another sale Of property recently
recorded which attracted considerable atten-
ton. This was piece of suburban property,
and the price obtained is regarded as an evidence
that this class of property is not depreciating
| in value. The title in some forty-two acres Of
the old Lyle tract at the corner of the Pierce
Mill road and the Tenleytown road was trans
ferred to Messrs. C. G. Glover and Thomas
HYDE. The price paid is understood to be about
$4,000, which is ct the rate of 81 800 per acre.
| Last July this property was offered at
public SALE but vas withdrawn, as the trustees
considered that the highest bid. u GOO per
| acre, was not enough for the property. It was
thought at that time by the trustees that it
ought to bring at least 81, 900 per acre. They
have succeeded in securing their price within
1000. 1t il evident that suburban property
| values in that locality have not fallen to any
great extent. A few years ago a few hundred
dollars per acre would have been regarded as
| big price. In fact, it was only five years
ago that ex-President Cleveland bought
| q place, since known as Oak View, con-
tanning only twenty-nine acres for about
| ex-Secretary Whitney sold the portion of his
| farm fronting on the Tenleytown road for
| 81, 500 per acre, and 1t was thought then that
he had obtained pretty stiff price. Improve
ments Of various kinds have been made since
| then in that locality and property values havo
naturally increased. 1t is. perhaps, not surpris-
| ing that sale at this time demonstrates that
| the standard of values has been maintained. It
| is, of course, not intended to be implied that
q, 800 per acre is the prevailing price OF land
| in the Tenleytown region. Much higher prices
have been paid.
For example, more than a year ago Mr..
Cleveland sold his place for about "a, 900 per
acre, while last fall DIR. Busey got $4,000 per
acre 1or MS properly, winch j Opposite Oak
| View. Two and three thousand dollars per
| acre has been paid for other choice properties
| id this vicinity.
FINE BUILDING SITE.
handsome building site at the southwest
corner of New Hampshire avenue and Q street
has recently been purchased by Mr.. W. C.
Whittemore, through J. B. Winner. real estate
broker, from Mr.. William Walter Phelps. This
lot is a part of what is known as the Phelps
| square. The portion of the square fronting on
Dupont circle and extending from New Hamp-
! shire avenue to 18th street was purchased in
| the spring by Mr.. l.. 2. Letter, who is erecting
| Q fine residence there. The ground now
owned by Mr.. Whittemore has O. frontage
| OF ITO feet on New Hampshire avenue and
| the same frontage on Q street and contains
| about 6,125 square feet. The price paid was
| $50, $40, which il at the rate Of about IS per
| square foot Mr.. Whittenore now owns hand
| some home at tho corner Of 18th and N Streets
which he has leased for a year while he is alb
| sent from the city travelling. 1t is understood
| that he contcmplates the erection Of a fine res
| idence on this property, which he has Just &C
quired.
Mr.. Letters PURCHASE.
Mr. Letters lot is Of very generous proper
| tions, ns it has q frontage Of some 40 feet on
New Hampshire avenue and 10th street and 4S
| feet nm Dnpont circle II coptaioa N lesu thai,