The New York herald., 1922-09-25
: RENTS FAIL TO FLOP
FOR THE OPT|M|STS
Brokers Report Last Minute
Drive for Apartments
Before Moving Day.
LANDLORDS STAND PAT
Prefer Houses Half OrThree-
quarters Filled to Cut
ting Their Rates.
SITUATION NOT IMPROVED
Four to Seven Room Flats at
SIS and $40 a Room Especi-
ally Hard to Find.
SITUATION NOT IMPROVED
With the big moving day of the year

With the big moving day of the year
October almost at hand no real
reduction of rents is anywhere in.
SYSTEMATICALLY in the case OF a
type os apartments most sought for,
the four. five. six and seven room flats
renting at from SIS to $40 a room.
The opinion Of real estate experts
and rental specialists put in the melt
ing pot is that landlords are standing
their ground. preferring in many in
stances to have their houses only half
or three-quarters filed at high rates
than wholly filed at reduced rates.
The kind OF apartments most sought
for are still scarce. especially In Man
haitian, because not enough new apart
ment houses have been put up on ac-
count of the continued high cost OF la
Dor and materials, and because labor's
methods are SO leisurely that many Of
the new houses that are being put up
cannot possibly be ready for occupancy
by October !. To let signs blossom ev-
erywhere but the rentals demanded are
only slightly reduced IL at all. and in
some districts increases are actually de-
manded. About the only reductions in
WI iSpOilcu py Tue rear eStdLS bIOheTs
is IN the case of apartments renting for
$4,000 up. Apartments costing SIS to
$40 room are scarce and no reduction
as looked for for the present.
The whole situation throughout New
York city is not especially improved
from year ago. The demand still ex
ceeds the supply. The outlook for
greater supply than demand remains re-
mote partly on account of the attitude
n a nj rf1. 80 q la
cost of materials. 1t Is stated on all
sides that rental costs cannot come
down until the items of labor and ma
terials get cheaper. Renting conditions
generally are very complicated. Bro
kers are unanimous in the opinion that
while the peak of rents has been
touched only a small decline may be
looked for. Brokers report tnat calls
for apartments are increasing as the
faterul day draws near. but they think
that little but "sampiing" is being done
The prosp. ctive renters. full Of optim-
ism, insist that rents must be drop
ping" The landlords simply refuse to
cut rents
Moving day falls actually on October
.. since October comes on Sunday
This fact gives tenants until noon OF
October to get out and more time to
pack up. 1t will also tend 10 save time
and relieve congestion In the matter Of
storing goods. Charles +. Morris presi-
dent of the Van Owners Association, says
that the cost of moving has not been
advanced from $40 an hour a load. with
So an hour for extra man." Much of
the business is done by corner men,"
who do most OF the moving for tenants
of the poorer districts and AK their own
prices. Van concerns do not look for
such congestion this year as was expert
encce on moving day in 1921.
Many persons IN Manhattan arc turn
ing TO Brooklyn and Queens for cheaper
quarters-thc Sis room type of flats
and are Ending disappointment in their
quest Real estate brokers say that
Brooklyn houses of this type are filled
and that the very modern apartments
are asking from $40 to $40 room and
having no trouble in finding tenants.
Production costs in Brooklyn will have
10 come down greatly before new apart
ments can be had there at low rents.
Nearly $4,000 new houses and apart
ments were built in Queens In the last
year, with people moving into many of
them before the plaster was dry. There
will not be a great deal of moving be-
cause much Of IT has been accomplished.