The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-08-02
REAL ESTATE
SUMMARY.
The Condition of the Market
During the Month of July.
q New Duty for the Assessor-Value of Real
Estate in San Francisco-Mortgages.
Greatest Real Estate Purchases.

rloih tue neal Estate circular, pup
lsbed by Thomas Magee, We make the
following summary: The number Of
real-estate sales made in July was 594,
OF the value of 81, 665. against $40 aggre-
eating 81. 114,002 in the previous month of
| June. There was, however, a better de-
mand last month than in June. 1t would
be impossible now to say in what district
the demand was best. 1t was not, indeed,
lively anywhere, but the district between
Central and First avenues and Sacramento
and jackson streets had the call. Large
business properties are not asked for at
| present but there is still much inquiry for
business properties worth $4,000 to $4,000,
with short supply. Outside Mission prop
erty Keeps in very fair demand, and at high
| prices. The outlook for fall business, if
not liattering. is at least fair.
The mortgages recorded on city real estate
| last month were very large and the releases
small. The total number of mortgages was
3sS, of the value of S1.3S6. 4O2; the number
| OF releases was 300, of the total value of
S43O,9oG. The aggregate value of the mort
| Cages was therefore nearly three times that
| of the releases. This increase is not due to
any special increase of loans by the savings
| BANKS, for all Of them only loaned sos, 295
in July, but was nearly wholly due to the
heavy Increase of mortgages to private per-
sons, arising nom the sale OF outside lands
south of the park aud Missiopward, out by
the county road. The sellers accept nearly
any sum even one-tenth to Fundamentally
cash down and the remainder on mortgage.
or course, these transactions make the mort
cages run up heavily. There is a fair supply
OF money only at tha savings banks. Moth
ing suggestive of superabundance of
money or OF a reduction of the rate of inter-
est is at present in sight The city rates
I inn 70 he -, oil > ~.
savings banks. they paying the mortgage
tax. ms rate means 8 12 per cent net per
annum to borrowers The country rates
average per cent. There is very little de-
mand for money from the country at pres
ent, chiefly because the farmers are attend
ing 10 their crops.
THE BOARD OF EQUALIZ ALTON.
There is not only no real Justification, but
there Is not even a hadow of reason for an
increase Of the assessment roll of this city
and rounty by the State Board of EqualiZa-
ton; yet some of the members of that
board have proposed au increase We last
year aided eX-MayOr Pond in getting facts
together Of the prices paid for land in
long list OF cases in some twelve OF the best
fruit and general agricultural counties of
the State. These sales were compar ed with
the assessed value per acre of the land sold
The result showed that the assessed value
was only 30 to 80 per cent of the prices paid
by buyers, while member of the last State
Board, after spending about Il month here
in an exhaustive examination of the market
aS compared with assessed values, reached
the conclusion, and publicly admitted it,
that assessed values here averaged 70 per
cent of market values, and that at a time,
too when real estate generally was much
more active Of sale and firm of price than it
now is. San Francisco is now one of the
st heavily taxed cities not only of the
United States but of the world. This is
true, too, Ill spite of the fact that while nine
A Han Il 81 ..rA 1a.tHa
loaded down with debt, this city is practi-
Cally free from that nearly inseparable curse
of all cities. ANY attempt to increase our
assessment roll at present would be a gross
outrage.
NEW DUTY FOR THE ASSESSOR.
The Political Code requires the Assessor
TO assess property to the persons by whom
It was owned or claimed, or in whose pos
session control 1t was at II o'clock noon
Of the first Monday of March next preced-
ing. lu the case of unoccupied land, great
latitude was given to the Assessor, for while
the duty was imposed on him to assess the
land TO the owner, il was only where the
name of the owner was known to him, and
no diligence was required of him to aScer-
tain the name of the owner, and, therefore,
1t was that the assessment was so often
made to unknown owners" By an amend
ment to the code by the last Legislature a
radical change has been made in this respect.
Now the code requires the Assessor to
assess lHe property 10 Inc owner
thereof, when the name of the absent
owner is known to him, or if it
appears of record in the Office of the County
Recorder where the property is situated.
As the records must necessarily show the
name of the owner. the duty now is imposed
upon the Assessor To ascertain from an in
sppction of the records the name of the
owners on the first Monday of March next
preceding 1t seems to US that this law was
passed TO create new offices for political
hangers-on, the fact being that it does not
really matter whom real estate is assessed to.
SO long as it is described correctly the
owner can pay taxes on it whether it is as
seSSed to him or not 1t is an owners own
fault. too. il his property is not assessed in
his own name. for the Assessor will always
assess ii correctly if the owner takes his
deed to that official and makes the request
REAL ESTATE AND MORTGAGES.
The total assessed value OF the real es-
tate and the improvements thereon in this
city and county for this year is S245, COL, $50,
of which S167, 233, $50 is on the real estate,
and SIT, 4lS, 100 on the Improvements there
on. If the estimate of leading member
of the last State Board of Equalization was
correct. that city property Is assessed at
10 per cent of its full market value, then the
full market value of our city land and i'm
provements is about $3.50, 900, 900. The total
value Of all mortgages now due on the real
estate and the buildings thereon in this city
and county is as follows:
MORTGAGES 1891, DUE TO AMOUNT.
Hibernia Savings Bank