The Washington times., 1923-09-08
To BETTER
SPECULATIVE
! BUILDING
Home Builders Throughout the
Country Urged to Improve
Quality of Work.

Speculative builders are going
to build better homes.
One of the results of the
Better Homes Week campaign
last June is the announcement
on the part of several of them
that they have sought the CO.
operation of the local committee
of women in order to secure the
privilege of building a house that
will be used as the demonstration
house next May in the 1924
Better Homes campaign.
Idea Finds Response.
This is indicated in many of the
reports of the Better Homes Week
activities in various towns and
cities where the builders have
agreed to do the job under the
supervision of the national council
of the Better Homes organization.
of which Herbert Hoover is chair
man.
Heretofore the local chairman in
a given town has been under a
serious handicap in securing a
demonstration house in which to
carry on her campaign of educa-
ton in all phases of home-making.
Usually the most available houses
for this purpose were new homes
constructed by speculative builders
for selling. If she accepted the
ready invitation Of the builder to
borrow one of these houses as ::
demonstration house it meant that
the builder would quickly exploit
the fact and sell it and others like
it to the public with the implica-
ton that they were model" better
homes.
In very few instances were these
houses sufficiently in conformity
with the ideals of modern home
construction which rule the better
homes movement to furnish any
basis of truth for such an assump-
ZION. The chairman was therefore
forced to insist that the builder
sign an agreement rigidly prescrib-
ing his advertising intentions. While
many builders were ready to con
form, others were not and cam
paigns in many towns and cities
had to be abandoned.
The great advertising value Of
the Better Homes official approval
has impressed itself, however, upon
some of the most aggressive real
estate men in the country and they
have. been quick to bid for it i'll
the only legitimate way, namely, to
consult the Better Homes officials
in the laying of house plans.
Two Methods.
This will be done in two ways
In some instances builders will sub
NIT their plans for revision by the
National Council of Better Homes
in America In other cases they
will apply to the national council
for a complete set of plans ready
made.
The personnel of the National
Council of Better Homes in Amer
;ca assures that their decisions will
be practically the last word in per-
lection i'm small home building. The
council includes, besides Mr.. Hoover.
DIR. John r. Cries, head of the
building and housing division Of the
Department of Commerce; John Ihl-
der of the United States Chamber
of Commerce: Dom Barber, fellow
or the American Institute or Aren't
tects and specialist in the design.
ing of small houses. the most in
teresting of whose recent work is
the Home Sweet Home house at
Washington which was dedicated
during Better Homes week by the
late President Harding; Mrs. Will
liam Brown Meloney, secretary ami
founder of the Better Homes in
America organization. who, in the
capacity of editor of The Delineator,
for several years has made a study
and published innumerable articles
on the small house from the pens
OF the best authorities; Mrs T G.
Winter, president of the General
Federation of Women's Clubs; Clara
Sears Taylor, Washington rent
commissioner: Secretary Wallace. of
the Department of Agriculture;
Secretary Davis, of the Depart.
ment of Labor. and DIR. Lee Fran
KEEL.
Marks New Era.
Co-operation between the specu
lative builder and the Better Homes
organization on practical basis
marks the beginning of a new era