The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-04-26
REAL ESTATE AND
BUILDING NEWS
War Talk Has Nothing
to Do With the Pre-
vailing Dizziness.
SMALL SALES ARE
GREATLY IN LEAD
Business of the Week Confined
to Residential Property-Buy-
ers and Sellers of Business
Sites in Unexplained Mood.
Small Farms Are in
Active Demand.

NO. the war alarms have had no
effect one way or the other on the real
estate market. Whatever may betide,
we know that Hucrta, Carranza. Villa
& Co. cannot come TO Richmond anu
carry off any OF our valuable dirt, and
so the bears have not been able to do
press the market on account OF war
talk. II there has been any effect at
all, 1t has been that occaaioned by so
many extras put out BY the news
papers. These have kept the buyers
and sellers of real estate 40 buoy read
ing tho stuff alleged TO be war ncws,
they have had but little timo to look
after the closing up OF the many in
teresting deals that have been hanging
on the string In unfinished state for so
many weeks" Thus spoke an
Eleventh Street real estate agent to
the man OF news yesterday. Another
agent. who has Office In ono OF the
skyscrapers, overheard the above. and
lie chiincd In and said Speaking Of
that string. which believe was in
vented by The Times Dispatch, II Is
getting mighty heavily loaded ! am
sure that / never, in all my experience
as a real estate agent, had as much
inquiry from prospective investors and
little business actually consum-
sunated. 1 never saw buyer and
seller so hard TO get together on a
DEAL
"ait1nS, but Tor Whnts
Continuing, this man assured me
that might hoof 1t around Richmond
oil day and invade every real estate
Office in the town and interview every
real or pretended investor, and every
property holder. as TO that matter. and
] would not lind news OF a single largc
transaction. but / would hear every
agent in town talk bout prospective
deals they have hung on the string,
ar ne IN
the maturcd state in short while.
and i would Ind that, for some reason,
buyers and sellers arc both in q wait
Ing mood. and hard TO get OH real
trading ground. What they are wait
ing for. these Opponents, could not or
would not Say.
On this particular point, many other
agents We're interviewed, and there
were about as many explanations of
The waiting situation us there were
men 10 he interviewed. Some say thcy.
are waiting 10 what manner OF
loosening up Of cash the regional re-
serve bank Is bong to bring about:
"he.he. interest rates are going 10
= he reduced. whether or not national
banks arc going TO regard real estate
iss good security for loans, and whether
or not war aud runors Of war arc
going to bring about flush times. as
some wars and some rumors OF war
have been known to do, and this, that
and the other.
Encouraging Points.
None OF this talk mag be worth the
Taper on which / am writing about II.
but the fact remains the all of TIC
city and suburban sales that were made
last week were confined strictly To
RESIDENTIAL property, and in the main
10 tho lower priced dwellings and lots
J nave heard of hut two houses among
those sold that brought over $4,000.
one encouraging thing about the
business Of the past week is that MANY
lots were sold to people who propose
TO build homes on them this spring
and summer These sales were in the
city and out in tho suburbs, and I'm
the main they were not high priced
lots, and this shows that men Of small
means are making their own homes in
and around Richmond and getting
away from the rent collector.
Notwithstanding the dullness in the
real estate market. and all OF the
agents agree that there Is q dullness
SO thick that IL may be felt, values
have not gone anywhere. and the man
looking for sacriloa bargains is sim
ply wasting his lime. Evidence of this
fact is to be found in the numerous
successful auction sales that We're
pulled off last week. I'm every case
the offer Of tile last bidder was salts
not single piece of property put
under the hammer YEAS taken in.
Farm LnudS BuuminE.
Tho dizziness such us il is. ana il
is of n kind tina; all Of the agents and
dealers think viii last but a little
while longer, is confined 10 city and
suburban property The agents who
make q specially OF farm lands are not
complaining in the least of dullness.
Thsy tell me that there never was as
much inquiry fer small farms within
4 circle of fifteen or twenty miles
around Richmond, and also far beyond
that circle. Inquiries for chicken
farms, truck farms and all kinds Of
small farms are as numerous rs the
agents would have them to be. AMI
when they have the goods la suit the
inquirers they have no trouble in maxi
ing prompt sales.
One agent tells me OF the sales OF
several farms near To Richmond and
OF two up i'll Nelson County. Another
tells of the sale II a tract Of $50 acres
In Chesterfield County. near the court
house, to James Patterson. another tells
1T sales in Caroline and Hanover Coun-
ties. and so it goes along down the line
Things on Proposed pike.
One agent told me that out ~ a
dozen OF more inquiries for small,
farms In Virginia, largely more than
half of tho inqairers were eager, or
appeared To lie. for a farm on the much
talked-of Richmond Wa SLING ton High
way. He further exp, essed the opinion
that when that highway Is built it will
be lined with little farms and we'll
crowded with prosperous tillers OF the
soil For that reason he wonders
that the owners of large tracts along
that route do not do more hustling
for tho carly completion of the high
way. He Informed me that recent
trip over the proposed route showed to
him that every county between Rich
mond and Washington is ut work on
tire road except Henrico. and that coun-
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