New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-11-19

at per cent increase soon went up % per cent;
and the prices kept rising Steadily: On ;inds
of iron work such grlls and fancy trimmings.
fooring Of a superior grade went up from ,4S to
$50 and 800 a thousand feet and builders were az
a loss how TO I'LL their contracts and come out
even. They gave up hope OF making any money
early in the action It not surprising therefore
schemes in their minds were content TO let those
schemes 20 on revolving without getting to any
In this connection II may be as we'll to say that
there is class OF builders who DO not let any,
thing daunt them. Building materials might nave
cost double and still they would have gone ahead
the remark might be amended to read that 'knaves
do also" The class Of men who build on loans
without knowing what the end VIII be i Is respGns
to swell the records Of the department Not al
building loan operators are smG n hen
the record Of liens indicates that there Is good
f ffan there there Ought to be- It is increasing too
parently. for this month has shown al previous s}s
records broken In the NUMBER OF pululhB liens hieu
In a single day
PRICE OF IRON DOUBLED.
In a discussion Of a subject Of this character the
opinion OF experts frequently conveys a more lucid
idea than congratulations. Here Is the way the
situation was crystalzed by H. 1. Moxley who
has been associated with some of the large Broad
way office building operations:
figure the general increase in the cost OF an
average building to-day as about 10 per cent; The
general public will understand better IL II IL put
this way A building tnat cOulO nave gone up last
year for 10000 would cost to-day S2SO0o0. was
talking to the president OF a large iron concern to-
day and he tells that the price OF iron Is just
double what 1t was year ago An advance OF 10
per Is In fancy scrollwork over the price
twelve months ago. Those figures ought TO explain
the situation but there other things TO be con-
sidered. year ago l could go TO the mills and
order thousand tons OF beams and they would
deliver them TO whenever | wanted them To-
day they won't guarantee delivery. Now, as to the
question OF the ultimate effect OF this increased
Of building: II the conservative operator stops
TO think Il to me the question answers Itself
Building Is certainly going to stop for the next
year-of course. not absolutey-but II Will not be
In proportion 10 what other conditions would seem
TO Justify Rents have decreased for the last four
than they were 1t is true that there has been q
slight advance this season. owing to greater de-
mand, but II will take a long time before they get
back TO the normal status, and they will have to
get beyond that 10 make investment in building. at
present prices. pay. Next year rents will go up
surely. There three ways In which things will
equallZe themselves. Material will eventually come
down to a basis OF safe calculation. do not mean
that building material Is ever going to be cheap
as II has been in the past. but there will be a more
uniform standard OF price. Then. have said.
meet the Increased cost OF construction Last In
vestors will have to he satisfied with lower rate
of interest IL Is hard TO convince mon to-day that
they cannot get the same returns capital that
they once did but we are gradually nearing the
European standard OF interest. Where nve years
ago the investor was only satisfied with net re-
turn real estate OF to per cent, In less than
years he will have TO be satisfied with from to
per cent The present period II one which offers