Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-28
REAL ESTATE GOSSIP
Usual Tendency of Market to
Suburban Property.
SUBJECT IS SEAs0NABLE
No Longer the Hardships of a
Pioneer Life.
PROSPECTS OF THE SEASON
Moderate Volume of Business Looked
for During the Coming Months
in Real Estate Circles.

The suburban sections about this city
naturally at this season of the year come
into prominence in the real estate mar
ket. 1t is not meant that they are quite
neglected during the balance Of the year.
for that is not the case. as there are a
good many owners as well prospective
buyers who are able to see the possible
ties in properties and are therefore not
entirely swayed by existing conditions
and surroundings. The bulk of people
are not of that disposition. If the prop
erty does not present an attractive ap-
pearance due to the worn state of the
house or the bleak or badly kept sur
roundings then in many cases such cir
cumstanoes act bar to the ready
marketing of the property.
1t is therefore to be expected that dur
ing the winter or the early fall or spring
months. before nature has put forth her
graceful forms. so pleasing to the eye.
country property is not in as favor
able position for marketing as it is later
on. Then of course there is the feature
of going out and inspecting country prop
best. an especially agreeable experience.
so that 1t can readily be understood there
should come a check to suburban dealing
when the summer Is over.
Away From City Streets.
There is another reason why the coun-
try Is more in the eye of the public dur
ing certain periods of the year than
others. and that is because of the natural
desire of the majority to get out into the
open and away from the closely built-up
streets of the city. The children are also
among the influences which tend toward
the country. place where there is a
chance to move about without being
warned by policemen and complained
about by nervous and fretful people.
But going away from the center of the
city and out in the suburbs is not today
what 1t was few years ago. for now
there trolleys which run in all direc-
tions and furnish rapid means of commu-
nication between the business section and
the outlying sections Then. too, the wa
and. in fact, all the conveniences of mod
ern living are found in remote places, so
that the hardships of the suburbanite are
now largely a thing of the past.
A Change Of Attitude.
These outposts of the citys growth, as
they might be termed, even when they
are rather far ahead of the city, are no
longer pioneer settlements in the meaning
Of the term as used some years ago. In
fact, the entire attitude of the public
mind relative to living in the country
near the city. at least in the case Of this
city, has undergone a marked change,
prejudices and meet objections in order
to prepare the way for sale of suburban
property.
II seems now to be a matter of choice
resting on the personal tastes of the indi-
vidual as to whether home is selected
in the city or beyond the urban limits. In
itself country property is no longer under
ban or sort Of suspicion that 1t is not
quite as desirable as some location nearer
the center of things. This change. as it
undoubtedly is, in public opinion, is due
to the improved conditions of living as
noted in the foregoing. and also it may
be attributed. in this city, at least, to the
beauty OF the suburbs.
Charm Of the Suburbs.
In that respect Washington is quite ex-
ceptional, for there are few places where
thu immediate surroundings are as
charming as those to be found, for in
stance. in the oRck Creek region. Then
as the plain where the city is located is
left there Is rise toward higher ground,
where the movement of the air is freer
and the outlook more extensive. and both
of these considerations have weight with
those who are looking about for homes.
Fortunately for this city and the future
of the suburbs the movement toward
their development has been quite free
from speculative operations. which seek
merely to find a quick and profitable mar
ket for lots without regard to the future
of the property There has been, of
course. something of that. but. as rule.
the buying has been by people who had
homes in view rather than a turn in real
estate This has given a steadiness TO
the suburban market which nothing else
could have done and as II still continues
to be a feature the prospect Is encourag-
ing.
Prospects Of the Market.
1t is rather early to form very accu-