The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1920-03-25
Living Conditions in Washington
By Guy U. Hardy


l told him if he happened to hear of
a house for sale or for rent in his
neighborhood to tip me of. In about
week he phoned me that one of his
neighbors had died and that he
thought | might get the house If |
went right out. l did so and closed
the deal. The house is not elegant,
but ample for our needs and is within
about IS blocks of the capitol can
walk back and forth most of the time
which ! like, and detest street cars.
Rents are rather high here. OF
course a few congressman and a few
senators can AFFORD to buy or rent
anything they want. But most of the
members try to live some where near
their salaries-which is hard enough
for any to do. | have some friends
in she latter class who pay from 5000
to $500 a month for unfurinshed apart
ments. Several pay $500 a month
for furnished houses and some 5000
few have small house sat 500,
but only very few. We pay SIPS for
a partly furnished house, and think it
very reasonable compared to what
some of our friends pay for about the
same thing. Lights and gas runs
about the same as in Canon City, but
cur winters coal cost s135.
When had about given up hopes of
being able to rent a house | con-
cluded TO buy. Interest Is low and
taxes almost nothing here. I figured
out that | could buy house, pay in
teyest and taxes and take a big loss
at the end of two or four years and
be ahead of the renting game. l sup-
pose looked at 25 or 80 houses
began at property listed at about
$500 and got up to houses listed at
<12.5O0. putting that as limit But
among all the houses | looked at only
one was satisfactory. II was very
nice -semi-detached" house which
means two houses built together with
a little yard on one side of each house
II was modern with eight rooms. and
on lot 81 feet wide 1t was 65
blocks from the capitol and would ne
cessitate street car ride of about an
hour each way The price was s12.-
500 for one side of the house The
taxes were only SIS year and water
about $40. 1t was Saturday night. L
said that would think of it over Sun
day. There were about 20 houses
alike on the street BY little inves-
tigation | found out that they had
been built about four years ago and
.Gut on the market at $500 That
some of them had changed hands
since that time at advance prices
ranging up to $1,000. So l called
UP early Monday morning to make an
offer, but found that the place had
been sold at s12,500 on Sunday.
That illustrates the advance in
property values here in the past few
years And it illustrates the low
rate of taxes. think taxes are lower
here than in any city in the United
States. The reason for this is that
the United States government pays
half the expenses for the city and the
taxpayers pay the other half The
reason for this is that the govern
ment owns about 65 per cent of~the
land in the city.
After that experience 1 gave up
looking for house and called up the
preacher.
Things are not as crowded here now
as they were during the war, of
course. But they are crowded enough.
While | was looking for a house q
new apartment was opened up. There
was 60 apartments in it. The man
ager announced that on a certain day
applications would be received. On
that morning 200 persons were in line
at his office. Every Sunday the pa
pers contain many ads wanting houses
and It is quite a common custom for
some OF them to read: "A bonus Of
$50 will be paid for information" re-
lating to the apartment or house de-
sired.
All living expenses are higher here
than at home. We have a good mar.
ket in our section Of the city and It 10
easy to get what 10 needed. but ~
prices are high, Christmas turkeys
cost 95 cents a pound. Mrs. Hardy
says that the only things she has
found cheaper here than at home are
Christmas trees and tropical fruits.
Evfoucinn Cnpvrcn