Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1899-09-26
DEMAND FOR HOUSES
Rental Agents Have More Tenants
Than Houses on Their Lists.
PROPERTYSALEsARE aLSeyERYGO GOOD
Cheap Dwellings Are Hardly to be
Found, and Modern Houses That
Rent for s25 and $50 Arc
Equally scarce.

-0f all the rental agents IN business
IN Ottumwa," said an agent yesterday,
Il believe am safe in saying that there
is not one who is not complaining
not on account of the lack of business.
but because he has not more houses to
rent. The fact of the matter is that
the demand for. good, modern houses
of all kinds is far-very farm excess
of the supply. / do not know when the
rental business has BEEN so good in
Ottumwa as at the present time.
1T is part of an Ottumwan's make
up continued the agent, "to be always
on the lookout for signs OF progress
about his, town. / know of no better
INDIGESTION of financial health and
growth than the condition of the rent
al market. In the first place scarcely
house gets far enough along to show
its general architecture that it hasn't
tenant long before completion. This
applies to nearly every manner of house
one can think of. Five and ten dollar
houses are absolutely off the market.
There are no vacancies in this class
it they are in a half way presentable
condition. The demand for S35 and
Sis houses is just as brisk, and it was
to this class, in particular, / referred
when I spoke of houses having tenants
before completion.
The second show of progress is that
rents have never been paid so prompt
Nv as now. There is no use of dilly
dallying with slow tenants, who, by
the way, are scarce, as every agent
Knows he would have no trouble in
renting the house should its occupant
he asked to vacate. ] want to make a
particular point, to show the ease OF
the renters money market, and that is
they are ali asking for modern houses
and are willing to pay $25 and $40 a
+ month for six room houses with new
conyeniences. They will take the old
houses, upon which owners~Te refuse to
put in reasonable repairs, Only as last
resort.
Ny third point is that Ottumwa is
certainly rapidly increasing in popula-
ton. i know it's an old story, but it's
true. 1t shows with the rental agents
quicker than with any other kind OIL
business. large majority OF our in
qufries come from new arrivals in the
city. A stranger in town always makes
that fact known almost Immediately
in asking for n house and / am not eN
aggeratlng when / repeat that the ma
jority OF inquiries are from new ar
& rivals.
another feature is that the towr
has never had SO many houses to rem
]. MISREPRESENTATION yet the supply is no
Eufficient. During the past eighteen
months several two story resi-
dences were builded that at first APP
peared to be a drug on the market
Everyone OF these has been occupied
and more are building. Besides, las
year, financial agents put up grea
manv modern houses to sell. >Thes
did not appear to go as rapidly as the.
thought they should, or their owner
thought they could get a better inter
est on their money by renting them, s.
nearly all have been rented.
Let me repeat: It's not tenant
rental agents need, it's more. moderl
houses.
Another thing I find has rapid.
advanced. is the sale of property
Within the past twelve months the sal
OF residence property has been tire
times more than it was before tina
3 time. Property never sold more read
fly than it does today for the people VIII
!, buy it realize that they can look fol
ward to great returns. Only today
have made two property sales which il
volye considerable money. Again, sa
the sale of property in Ottumwa is raj
idly advancing"