Omaha daily bee., 1906-07-01
TIMELY REAL ESTATE TALK
Ratio Between Building Permits and RsA
Estate Transfers.
BAD YEARS NOT A PROPER BASIS
Oppressive Times when foreclosures
Ruled the sales should Not he
Considered in the Present
Comparison.

AoiaAAOu DelWten the NOlune OF real
tate transfers and building permits in
Omaha for the last ten years, as shown
by table printed last Sunday in these
columns. He says:
Il see that some real estate man has
been puzzling over the statistics Of build
ing permits and real estate transfers and
trying to explain the peculiar ratio be-
tween transfers and building permits dur
ing the good and bad years. According
to the table the transfers Of real estate
In 1895 show a total Of 100000, whereas
the building permits were about S3OO, 600
and in 1896, the best year Omaha has ever
known, the transfers were only about
100000 and the building permits reached
a total OF 100000. 1 did not come to
Omaha until 1900, but l understand that
1896 was the worst year Omaha expert
enced in the way of business depression
or at least was as bad as any year from
1898 to 1898. In 1898 the transfers we're
tlS,OOO,OOO and 1t is matter -. common
knowledge that from 1893 E1G 1898
Omaha real estate was more dead than
the immortal smelt. The true explanation
Of the enormous total of real estate trans
fers in 1896 is that most OF the real estate
in Omaha had been foreclosed and sheriff's
deeds were about the only transfers that
went on record, and in these deeds the
consideration was the amount of the mort
gage plus the interest and costs; hence
the consideration was frequently doubling
the value OF the property foreclosed. Prob
ably most OF the deeds that went on record
in 1895 were sheriffs deeds, whereas today
there 10 scarcely one deed a month. be-
lieve that in 1895 the actual sales would
not total 100000 and that OF the $780,
900 OF transfers in 1905 there Is not $4,000
OF sherif's deeds. II you want the best
evidence OF Omaha's prosperity and the
difference between Omaha of 1896 and
Omaha today, you need only look at the
difference of the building permits, which
were 1883 in 1896 and 1887 464 in 1905.
There is another reason for the real
tate transfers not being the best evidence
OF the amount Of actual sales, and that
Is that many sales give 81 and other val
liable consideration instead Of the full
amount OF the purchase price. The nom
inal consideration is SUFFICIENT for a valid
transfer OF property and 1t does not ad-
vertise to the world a matter that should
be confidential between the parties to the
transaction. II you will pick up an east
ern paper you will see every day nearly
a column OF transfers by warranty deed,
and In every instance the consideration is
81 and other valuable consideration"
The partly built Brandes building is
proving one of the points Of interest to
visitors in the city. AS It Is known 90
the largest retail store in this part OF
country, they don't want to leave the -
without seeing IT, Neither are the citiDa>N
Of Omaha Indifferent to It. At any time
OF day people can be seen standing on the
corner OF Sixteenth and Douglas streets
watching the heavy steel beams they
arc raised from. the ground and swung
into place by steam hoists. The fact that
every piece OF steel was shaped right in
Omaha, at the Paxton & Vierling Iron
Works, makes the process much more In
terestinR. Now that the steel is placed for
the first three stories, the rapidity with
which these stories will be completed will
be the next wonder OF the people. provided
material can be secured as needed. and
there is no reason now TO believe It can
not be.
f. T. Heyden OF the firm of Hastings q
Heyden has Just returned from trip
through the east. with the firm conviction
that Omaha is the proper place to invest
in real estate After looking over eastern
cities Of the size OF Omaha, among them
Albany and Syracuse, he has reached the
conclusion that Omaha has too few retail
stores and there is a good opening here
for more. Another observation is that
higher rentals on residence property here
offer greater inducements to the man with
money to invest. In the eastern cities
owners are content with an annual rentAl
OF $3.50 on a building costing $500, while
on a residence of the same cost in Omaha
the owners get $40 to s4s a month. Mr.
Heyden saw vacant houses in all the cities
which he visited. Until building catches VI
v..EeA ~. kar anA fha 81 has
some vacant houses. he said, investment
In houses will offer a high rate OF interest
The Charles E Williamson company re
. ports Omaha city warrants are becoming
a popular investment in Omaha and tn,
state. The company deals extensively II
these warrants and bought most OF las
years issue, which runs IN various amounts
up to 800 Formerly the company sole
these warrants almost entirely TO nationa
bank customers in the east. but in the las
year many have gone to Nebraska in
vestors. A recent sale was to a Lneoll
man.
81. Brown of the Transmississippi Grail
company has sold his residence at 30 Soutl
Thirty-fourth street to Mr.. Stevens OF Blair
who will come to Omaha to found bank
J. G. Kendis has bought a home a
Twenty-second and Charles streets from
the Byron Reed company, The considera
ton was u,6Oo
Some recent sales OF the Charles E. VIII
hanson company; Two lets in the sub
division at Thirty-third and Seward streets
plated by the company, TO Eugene N
HUI. for cottages for investment; a quarter
acre lot IN Ellistone Park place TO MI
Laura Hartry for investment: house an
lot, North Twenty-fourth near Lake, {
A. W. Sherman; auarter-acre lot in Ell
stone Park place to George W. Long ia
investment; cottage at corner OF Twenty
eighth and Howard to s. ]. F1restone. a
eastern buyer. for investment; half-acI
lot in Ellistone Park place TO Harry {
Hartry, on which he plans TO build nm
home; two lots OF an acre each to Mr.. On
OF California for investment
J. II. Dumont a Son, the youngest rei
estate nrm In town. reports the follow1n
sales for the week; The residence OF
Frank Carpenter at Twenty -ssventh an