Evening star., 1925-07-11
CITY'S HOUSING is FAR
. BELOW PREW4R BASIS
TlU0 Persons to. Unit Was Old COnditiOn.
But Average Is Now Consid-
erabIy Higher Here.

II the residential situation in the
District of Columbia. is to return to a
pre-war basis. 7405 more housing
units will be required to be built in
the District in addition to about $500
units annually. to keep pace with the
average annual increase here in popu-
lation of II ,O0O.
study of these figures, compiled
for the benefit of a number Of local
builders, shows that before the war
19l1-there We're about two persons to
every housing unit. 1t is now con.
siderably more.
The population since 1917 has in
creased about 10000. and there have
been since then % 595 apartments and
I houses built, which, figuring on the
pre-war situation, provided room for
b3.1S0 persons, leaving, on basis of
two people for each housing unit.
31,lO5 more units TO be built. accord.
ing TO available statistics.
Building Not Caught Up.
While an average family is usually
taken to consist of 4.5 persons and
the tremendous building program in
the National Capital has very much
SSh'Nth lIlt Slludllou. bullulnS mas not
vet caught up to the average popu-
lation increase and will not be near
doing so until the end of 1926 After
this normal increase is taken care of
mere still remains considerab BILE build
, Ing to do to place the housing situa-
ton in the District on a "two-persons-
to-one-unit basis" such as existed in
1917.
The average building program is
now a hnnt IN OOU
nually, so that it will take several
Years, according to those who have
made the study. TO get back to pre-
war status. Seven years at 10000
units a year would mean a long step
toward the pre-war situation. many
builders feel
From 1910 TO 1917 there were PLIES
housing units built: from 1917 ia
date 26,595 housing units have been
built The comparative low figure in
the l9l1-25 period as compared with
pre-War days is accounted for by the
slump in building in 191S-19-2l
There Is great tendency on the
part of residents TO look for new
homes, and many of the older dwell
inSs are falling before the commercial
growth of the city. Therefore many
builders feel that if the city is to
return TO a two-persOn-to-a-h housing
unit basis and take care of the an
nuaI population increase and the de-
, mand for new homes the present
building boom in the National Capi-
tai will have to continue for some
time TO come.
Distribution Wide.
One of the interesting features of
the past fiscal year. the record year
In construction of buildings in the
National Capital is an analysis of
the distribution of the expenditure of
more than S62 100000 during the fiscal
year based on the District building
figures.
While the Northwest section of the
city always leads in value of new
construction. during the past fiscal
year S49. 92l ,107 of the total $62. .000.-
600 was spent for new buildings in
that section of the city, indicating a
trem endoUS development in the
northern part of Washington. Much
Of this money was spent in the erec-
tion of more than 1000 houses and
more than 100 apartment houses.
The Northeast section of the city
comes next in point of new cohstruc-
ton with an expenditure there of 81.
e32 .5S3 In this section the money
wass spent in a large proportion for
residential purposes. particularly OF
the one and two family dwelling type.
The Southeast section runs third,
= with development aggregating 80 l40,
S22. Most of this also was expended
for residential purpose and very few
apartments, most of the apartments,