The sun., 1916-08-20
Investors Have
Made This Sum-
mel One of Nota-
bile Trading---Low
Prices, High Rent
ais and Easy
Money Rates.
Conditions Right
for Revival in All
Sections

on . scale that means . return
of such conditions a. prevailed before
TIE panic Of 1907. when everybody
wanted to own It. and those who bought
made money. From all quarters brok-
srs report higher rentals. higher values.
. better demand for propsSty and more
end larger amount seeking Investment
b reG1 estate. either directly or through
mortgage loans. They report q more
healthy condition In the renting he,d
than the city has known for years. They
say that the city by adopting the soniny
plan Q insured a continued rise In
values. and that the . completion Of
the great dual subway system Is begin
ming to be felt In. . demand at salts
1Actory prices for property for invest
msnt and improvement.
Real estate brokers always were opti-
mbtA. but their optimism In this instance
has some reason. for real estate trading
during the summer months has demon
Gtrated that there IL a big market. Many
q the most careful investors n build
ers have bought large. we'll located real
estate recently. believing that the prices
quoted are the lowest at which those
properties ever will be offered. Invest
ors buying for income have taken many
properties Of extraordinary attraction.
Builders have bought well located sites
not because they wish to reimprove At
once. but because they think the prop
critics cheaper now than they will be
later on. Some builders even think hat
a. the present high cost OF materials
they can reimprove old properties and
have cheaper buildings than though they
waited for a yea to buy their land.
Summertime generally IL the dull
period In the real estate world. but this
year no dulness has appeared. In fact
business has been more lively since the
Beginning Of June han II was prior to
that time. Buying by small investors
who trade In dwellings. small apartment
houses and store properties has con-
tinued active throughout the summer
more active than It has been since 1911.
when the best activity Of recent years
was seen. But the feature OF the last
few months IL the interest In real estate
indicated by the purchases Of men who
Gpdnd q million dollars or thereabouts In
Q single deal. II In the great number Of
tran&actions Of this sort closed during
this summer that points to a revival In
real estate and a big fall market.
The largest investment deals Of the
summer n been in high class apart
ment properties and ave helped to
bring TO notice the d~esirabili.y OF such
houses as permanent investments. On
present day valuations the new houses
are most attractive. for they are fully
rented In most cases. which means that
purchasers are assured full incomes from
the start. This year there IL a decided
shortage OF %rentable suites. for building
has boen inactive. and there is little
prospect, In view Of high building costs.
OF much apartment construction during
the next year. That means that apart
ment rentals will be advanced generally.
and what Is now a goo. investment will
b made q better one. Brokers and
operators believe that once rentals are
established at higher levels they never
again will be reduced.
Among purchasers Of u properties
since summer began In the Donovan
estate. william J. Stitt. Harry Raymond.
n. q. Leeds and John I. Downey. The
Donovan estate bought the Wendolyn, at
Riverside Drive and Tooth street. ono OF
the hnest apartment houses In the Eiv-
srside section. 1t was held at N.25o.-
600 n It's sale was one OF the big
features Of the summer realty market.
The others have taken Investment
properties costing them from S425. 900 10
$3.50 1000. Mr.. Stitt IL the buyer Of the
apartment at 316 West Seventy-ninth
street. a twelve-story building valued at
$4,000. Mr.. Raymond now owns the
Bellguard. at Broadway and Eig%hty-ninth
street. one Of the new and one Of the
finest houses. That he paid nearly the
asking price Of $500. 900 for the property
indicates that this new owner. who Is
well known in Wall Street. thinks Man
haitian apartments good investments.
The big apartment house at tn- south
east corner of West End avenue and
Ninety-eighth street appealed no strongly
TO Rudolph O.. Leeds. q Western capl-
talist. that ne took II at a valuation
Of e760.000. On that basis Mr.. Leeds
has . splendid investment. for the house
u fully tenanted and IL paying In rents
large percentage OF the value Mr..
Downey. who has built extensively in
this city himself and knows values we'll.
gave new apartments a great boost as
investments when he purchased the nine
story house at,122 East Seventy-sixth
street. for which the builders asked
3475.000.
While builders generally have not been
even moderately active. one OF the fea-
lures of the spring market has been the
buying OF prominent sites for special
types OF buildings. Thus Henry Ford
arranged for one Of the largest deals
Of the year when he bought the north
cas-. corner OF Broadway II Fifty
fourth street. lying between the Hotels
woodward n Albemarle. A head
quarters building for tho Ford Motor
Company will he erected. the transac-
ton involving about $4,000. 900. Two
OF the largest lot deals in many years
on Manhattan Island were closed In re-
cent weeks, one OF them involving the
old American League Baseball Club
property Oh Broadway and Fort Wash
ington avenue from 165th to l6sth
street. valued at $4,000. 900, AND the
other affecting ffty-seven lots In the
Dyckman section, which will he i'm
proved with fats. What Ii 20 be done
with the ball club property Dr. who |.
the buyer are secrets which nobody has
been able to solve yet.
Sale Of the old Bowery landmarks. tn,
Atlantic Gardens and the Thalia Thea
tire. just south OF Canal street. Is a firs
step toward the Improvement Of tha
property with modern buildings. Valued
at $500 1000. real estate operators hav'
NAken the old buildings, n will hole
them only long enough to md a buildel
who will replace them with commercial
structures for the buhy district near tn,
Manhattan Bridge approach. The othel
extreme property dealing II the LEASING
Of the Baron Aston property at Fiji
avenue and Fifty-sixth street as n sit
Tor ono OF the finest apartment hotel
ever planned. Herbert Lucas II head o
the leasing company. Another big sum