Evening star., 1923-07-21
Ask National Mortgage Body
To Foster Real Estate Buying
Realtors association Also Urges Encour.
! agement of Home Ownership to
+ Maintain Present Values.

Encouragement of home ownership
as d means of maintaining real estate
values, and recommendation for
the national mortgage association,
TO be run by the National Association
OF Real Estate Boards as d step in
the direction of simplifying financing
We're contained in thte report of the
housing committee of the national
association recently. The report fol-
lows:
"The news bulletins of this asso-
citation and newspapers keep us in
formed regarding housing conditions
throughout the country and it is eX-
pected that Mr.. Morse of the Babson
statistical organization will present
to US the latest statistics in graphic
form and show US how to forecast
the future, 1t is the business of the
realtor to lie able to adjust those
facts and forecasts to local condi-
tions and to educate the members
Of his community how to apply the
lessons so learned in such a way as
to strengthen and improve real estate
values.
THE chart of Col. Ayres of the
present shortage of houses and the
progress that is being made in over
coming that shortage, and proves
clearly that 1t will be many years
before il Will be overcome.
The national industrial confer
ence board has recently reporte ed that
the present cost Of housing is the
highest it has been and is ~ per
cent over the cost in 1914, and that
the cost of labo- is liz per cent
higher.
Construction Increases.
''Dow'S reports and others all show
that there has been more construc-
tion this year than ever before and
that labor in the construction in
dAstries is not only employed to the
maximum capacity, but great demand
for it is causing a snowbaliing of
wages. which is uemoralizing and
which lessons production. This con-
dit!on has caused the American Coun-
Gil of Construction Industries wisely
to advise the curtailment of non
essential building.
production can be Increased by
training more men for the different
branches of the construction indus
tries and by teaching labor that the
BEST way to reduce the cost of living
and to avoid the competition of cheap
labor is 10 increase efficiency and
production and to reverse the per-
and encouraging SlothtulneSS. So
long as present policies and condi-
TlonS exist the tendency must be for
the cost of housing to increase until
1t comes nearer to the proportion of
increase of labor costs.
Still Restrict Rents.
The war emergency rent legisla-
tion, where adopted, IS being contin-
ued, and although the hysteria is
over the public still favors restrict
ing rents just as far ~ il can. re-
gardless of economic conditions of
justice. This is due largely to ig-
norance. and, as the Wall Street
Journal said about it recently: DE
vices for suspending economic laws
are futile in the end and always cost
ly in operation" and yet real estate
owners do little to protect their in
terests and those of the public
through enlightening public opinion.
1t Will continue until the demand
for more houses is met, unless some
thing more radical is done in educat-
ing the public, increasing production
and lowering labor costs.
THE cost of houses has increased
partly because of the demand for
improvements and facilities not for
merly considered essential. Compar-
atively little progress has been made
toward reducing costs and increasing
speed in the construction of Souses
The small house service bureau Is
step in the right direction. and the
Department of Commerce is doing a
valuable service in helping to simpli-