Evening star., 1924-09-11
SAVINGS DEPOSITS
REACH HUGE SUMS
Merchants Claim Thrift Is
? Hurting Sa|es-Home
Buying on Big Scale.
BY j. &. ROSLE.
Special Dispatch to Tie Star.

epePlai 1lSpatch 10 Tie STAR.
NEW YORK. September 11.-Sav-
fngs deposits throughout the country
are of tremendous proportions today
%and have been increasing steadily in
the last three months. Merchants and
business men who are close students
of economic conditions. however. do
not regard these deposits irdicat-
ing accurately the purchasing power
of the depositors. In some centers
merchants declare savings deposits
have increased at the expense of
trade, rather than that trade has in
creased the result of deposits.
This is due. according to some eX-
pertS to the buying Of homes on the
part of many thousands of persons
throughout the country. These buy
. ers have assumed heavy obligations
in the shape of carrying CHARGES and
mortgages Many of the first mort
gage on buildings put up since the
construction boom started ar" com
mencing to mature and new home
owners are using saving deposits as a
means OF preserving and adding to
the sums with which they expect TO
meet payments.
Money Needed for Interest.
Many of the mortgages will be ex-
tended but when such Il favor is
. granted it usually Will be on con-
dition that some payment bH made
toward reducing the principal Saw
ings are being stored up to meet
these demands and interest charges.
f.. 1t would not he surprising if savings
and individual bank deposits would
show decrease shortly after Octo-
Der |. as Il result of payments TO
building and loan associations.
Sums SO utilized probably Will re-
suit in increased activit! in CONNER
.ill DIS t-f. Gin,
money will be released INTO general
:. circulation which hIS he, n employed
only in the limited fields permitted
savings banks The falling off in
= sales of furniture and household
goods, which has been noticeable in
recent weeks in many communities.
. is attributed in large part to the fact
that houSeholderS are concentrating
on property payments at present
rather than on furnishing their new
a homes.
Property Values Higher.
To the benefits of their thrift which
? has become habit on the part of
. new houSeholderS. have been added
those represented by the, increase in
= real estate values.
New additions have sprung up in
= nearly all cities in which property
values have been enhanced by build
ing md b. imp c~ed transportation.
= light and gas : rViCe. which the
building programs nave promoted. An
steXample is furnished by the increase
in the values of property condemned
for the Delaware River Bridge at
Philadelphia.
The report OF the bridge commits
= sion says in this connection: The
original estimated cost OF the real
f. estate required in Philadelphia was
$4.109.0 900 We have expended TO date
$2,33l.420. The remaining properties
to be raid for entail an additional
- estimated expenditure of $5.3,6.o00.
This means an increase of S2.Sa8,i2o
over the original estimated cost of
g the real estate.
1T should be noted that a striking
increase in real estate values has
occurred since 1921 We feel that the
properties purchased h- the joint
a bridge commission We're obtained at
fair prices. bat despite the care taken
. in the purchases t. total far eX-
ceeded the original estimate"
Building Holds Up Well.
- Latest reDortS from the building in
dustry from some $50 cities in the
country show that construction con-
> tinues on Il healthy, stable bas
Permits issued in August in those
: cities called for eHpen liture of $210,
900, 000 gain as compared with Au-
gust, 1923, of about 3 per cent. All
sections showed increased activity as
compared with July, this gain in the
I, case of the Pacific coast reaching IL
lr1rt .,I-