The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-04-29
BIG INCREASES IN
 NEW YORK REALTY
Nv HOLLAND.


 cent burial ground, was offered to Jay 1 Gould in 1895 for $900,000. MT. Gould declined even to consider the offer. ne ! said that he preferred to make nls
 investments in securities which Wouli serve as a quick asset which would pc sold on the instant on the floor or tne stock exchange in case he were Tn need of funds He cared nothing TOT
 real estate, making only such invest
 ments in it's as provided city home, country place for himself and family. So also the Vanderbi1ts, at least the commodore and his son, William H. disdained real estate. They made such | investments in it as were necessary Tor the New York Central railroad purpose and for their city and country homes Today both MT. Vanderbilt and Mr' | Gould, if they were alive, would dis-
 cover that real property in New ork | city may serve as a most profitable lh- vestment, yielding quick and very large returns in many cases.
 Two years after MT. Gould refused to buy the plot of ground above reterre1 1 to for 800 900, it was valued at mil | lion and half This was in part due 1 to the fact that lofty structural steel building had been erected upon the land A day or two ago this lana am i the building which stands upon ls were bought by the United States Steei corporation, through subsidiary 1 upon the payment of approximately 1 s5, 900, 900 in spot cash. A plot of ground which was owned 1 few years ago by the Vanderbilts in the vicinity of the Grand Central ter miflal and was esteemed to be worth perhaps $200,000 is now appraised a. considerably over million.
 ] The purchase of the Empire buildi hg so called, by the United States Steel ..1,n nrNd n n 1 than local interest if it were generally known that the cash payment of five millions is presumably the largest transaction of that kind ever made, Tor private property, certainly in Ne" York city But there are other reasons why this transaction is Of more than local importance. It reflects the exr traordinary activity in real properties which has prevailed now for several months and is likely to prevail for a long time to come. It means undoubt- edly a great demand for buildings,
 thereby making a large market for building material and a plentiful em-
 ployment for labor.
 BUYING REAL PROPERTIES
 Since the war began, and especially
 in the past year, several banks and two
 or three large corporations nave
 bought real properties in the financial
 IT
 the apprehension that rentals are to
 be greatly increased. But if rentals
 in properties of this kind are increased
 that furnished excellent proof or the
 growth of the financial district and the
 expectation that prosperity, heretofore
 unsurpassed either relatively or abso-
 lutely, is to characterize that district.
 and therefore the entire country.
 James Stillman, who possessed
 wonderful foresight, did buy for his
 bank, the National City, building On
 Wall street, paying approximately
 $5, ,O00, 900 for it. But that was not pri-
 vate property. The government held
 the title and when the new custom
 house was built the government no
 longer had need for this property ana
 was ready to sell it.
 That investment has proved an ex-
 cellent one, and it is presumed that the
 rentals are sufficient to meet the in-
 terest upon the investment and thus
 indirectly give the bank it's largo
 banking facilities without actual cost.
 MANY SHARP BARGAINS Anyone who desires to invest in real
 estate or to secure rental on long
 time lease is now caution by those
 who are expert to make his bargains
 as speedily as possible. For already they are telling of experiences of men who thought they had entered intovar- engagements for purchase or for rentals,
 only to find that someone else had
 stepped in ahead of them. One leading
 business man negotiated for the rental
 of a country place for which ne Was
 to pay at the yearly rate of $5000. The
 bargain was made so far as that could
 be done by word of mouth. but the
 papers were not signed. A few hours
 before the agreement was to be bound
 by written acknowledgement someone
 else stepped in and offered nearly
 $20O0 more for the lease. The offer
 was accepted and the disappointed man
 found in his mail returned to him the
 check which he had given for $5000, for
 he was to pay the full amount in ad-
 vance,
 At one time many wondered whether overbuilding was not in progress in the financial district, so that there would be for time loss upon the invest ments, since it was believed that the buildings could not be rented in full No longer is there any comment CT that kind, The pressure of would be | tenants is very great and that inevit- ably has caused an increase in rental. 1 It is reported here that like condi- | tion prevails in some of the larger fi- nancial centers of the United states. And it is the common belief that the country is just entering upon an ers U | improvement which of itself will en- | courage all industries which are occu- pied with furnishing building material and will give ample opportunity for l the endowment of labor. Real estate | investment usually follows boom in | the securities market
 WHERE THERE IS A FAMINE Within a hundred miles of New York | and also in some of the larger cities
 which are located at greater distance l there now prevails real famine in 1 small houses of a kind rentable for from s25 to $40 a month. Agents are no longer booking applications for rents of this kind. In many Of the cities there would be profitable in- vestment if hundred new dwellings commanding a moderate rent were
 built A demand of this kind is sure I to be met with speedily, SD that the | expectation is that there are to be very heavy investments in real prop erty. especially of the kind which would secure comfortable homes at a moderate rent for those of small in | comes or who labor with their hands. l Men who are fortunate enough to have large incomes find that it is ini- possible to rent country places because | there are no country places now for | rent All have been taken up. There 1 fore it is presumed that men of wealth ] will, as soon as the opportunity offers. buy country places so that they may | secure their summer homes.
 NOT THE FIRST SKYSCRAPER Reports following the announcement | that the steel corporation had bought the Empire building stated also thi,-
 this building was the first skyescrapei