The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1926-08-21
OUTSIDE CHECK
AIDS OWNER
BY F. r. HI. BACON
Consulting Engineer

real estate and building manage
ment was of a different breed from
all other lines Of business; that the
careful check-ups accepted as a
matter of course in other fields
were unnecessary in this; that the
utmost consideration Of customers
emphasized in most other fields
was superfluous in the case of
tenants.
That notion has been undergoing
revision to the point where it has
almost disappeared.
Today one finds fairly prevalent
the idea Instituted % years ago in
the. Hudson Terminal buildings,
where it happened that the owners
gave to me the opportunity to first
prove the worth Of ownership man
agement. Notably among big
office structures in New York
which maintain their leadership
through their practice of ownership
management are the Carbon and
Carbide Building, the Bush Terminal
Building, Hudson Terminal Build
ing, Farmers Loan and Trust
Building, the Equitable Building
the Westinghouse buildings and
many others.
Check Up Often
Owners of properties such as
those mentioned have found it ad.
visable a: stated intervals to check
carefully the efficiency, not only of
their equipment. but also of their
operating staffs. Such owners seek
constructive analysis which only
an experienced outside viewpoint
can furnish in much the same man.
ner that rhey seek, at least once
year, a thorough check-up by an
accredited outside accounting firm.
They expect no dishonesty on the
part of their own accounting staff:
neither dc they seek to uncover in
efficiency, but time and practice have
proven that the outside viewpoint
is the orly one WHICH will keep a
system we'll oiled, up on it's toes and
efficient.
This is just as true in building
The outside viewpoint, IL it IL
capable. experienced and unpre5u-
diced, is immensely valuable in
building engineering and operation.
Theer are times when its recon-
mendations show an owner where
he can reduce expenses of operation.
There are times when its recon-
mendations advise additional ex-
penditures; constructive expendi-
lures which will pay dividends in
rentals or increased market value
of the property or both.
There are times when the inves-
tigator's analysis shows a property
to be highly efficient.
Naturally this is the most pleas
ing Of all and in all my experience
l have never. known an owner who
received such a report to regret the
service fee it involved. He felt
more than repaid in the assurance
it gave him.
Pass launches"
It is pleasant commentary on
real estate practice to note that
owners are more and more denying
lunches" and are proceeding to
base their acts on judgment founded
on scientific analysis. This has
not always been true, not by any
means.
There used to be a great majority,
divided mainly in two classes; those
who felt they could not afford to
find out what was wrong with
their buildings, even when they
sensed something was wrong; and
those who said that they were
making money, so what difference
did it make. Neither class is
numerous today.
The first class has practically
disappeared because owners rea-
Iized that the only way they could
discover causes of wrong condi-
tons was by searching for the
causes scientifically; the second
class, while not entirely gone,
grows less and less because its
representatives, looking further
ahead, realize that rentals are not
Interchangeable and unless their build
ings are kept top-high, their good
situation will not be maintained.
There are certain fundamentals
on which an engineer conducts his
investigation into any owners sit
uation. Usually one starts with
the operating figures, Analysing
them over a considerable period,
studying every expenditure and the
value it has brought, applying this
both to personnel and material.
Then separate Investigations are
made as to equipment and opera
.tion. The heating system, the ele-
vator service, the cleaning crew
these three usually reveal very
quickly whether they are being
operated correctly or wastefully.
All three, besides their direct re-
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