The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-06-22
May Building Contracts
Gain 81 Per Cent Over
1884 Period.

SIIuCIIOll, DIS CdlCu4dICQ 1lOAll JUN
| ing permit figures of the United
States Bureau of Labor Statistics,
amounted to S34.675,773 In Feb
ruary the figure was S39.3730 83; in
March. $61,316,447; in April, 500
099 800
May figures, now being prepared
by the bureau are expected to show
a gain of approximately 100 per
cent. Figures collected by the F.
/ w. Dodge Corp based on contracts
let in May, show a total of Sl26,-
100000 for 81 states east of the
Rockies.
June figures continue to mount,
according to unofficial observations
In April, employment in the con-
struction industry increased IL per
cent and pay rolls 12.1 per cent, ac-
cording to the Bureau of Labor Sta
tistics. In May, figures for New
| York State show another IL per
cent increase in employment and a
! IA per cent increase in pay rolls.
With all these gains, construction
is still far below the marks set in
the late 1920s. Annual construction
then amounted to 10 and II bill
| lions a year. In 1888 it sank 20
three billions, with only half bib
lion of this in private construction.
Three Point Program
It is just two years since the
Administration COTS its pump prim-
ing PWA program under way. Some
of the work is still in progress, with
more in prospect under work relief.
A year ago the Administration
launched its second housing expert
ment, designed to get private cap
ital at work. 1t has pursued three
lines of activity.
l. Insuring loans of $4,000 and less
for undermining homes;
2. Attempting to reform home
financing methods, to establish a
nationwide market for home mort
cages, and to insure loans for build
ing new homes and refinancing ex-
listing ones.
3. Insuring construction of low
cost housing projects.
Altogether the Federal Housing
Administration has insured modern
ization loans to 2O4,6 500 persons,
amounting to $84, 226,O55. Its better
housing campaign and its demon
stration to private banks that char
acter loans at low interest rates are
good business are credited with
stimulating another half-billion dol
lars of modernization.
Applications Gain 500 Per Cent
To date, the FILA has received
1877 applications for insurance OF
mortgages on individual homes,
amounting to $75,726,24l. GA third
of this is for new construction, the
rest for refnancing0 Insurance has
been approved for 7442 mortgages,
amounting to $31 ,633,919.
In the last two months the rate at
which applications are coming in to
FILA have increased some 500 per
cent. Around April l applications
amounted to about 100000 daily.
For the week ending April II the
daily average was $1,231 900.
FILA believes its steps to reform
mortgage financing deserve sub
stantial credit for the improvement.
The mortgage loans it inSureS are
amortized over 20 years; they
amount to so per cent of the value
of the property; there is no second
mortgage, nor a refinancing every
three years. The owner retains his
equity in the property even if disas-
ter overtakes him and he is fore
closed.
SS,OO0,OO0 Loans Insured
To some extent, banks and in
surance companies are making loans
according to this pattern. Mort
gage associations to provide ma
ton wide market for mortgages, as
surfing liquidity for such paper and
| thus lessening the danger of fore
closures, have not been established,
but to some extent the large insur-
ance companies are taking their
place. Seventy-six of them have
qualified as approved mortgages.
In addition FILA has insured loans
of So. 1853, 744 for low-cost housing
projects and has given tentative ap-
proval to another S3,357 400.
Under an act just approved by
Congress FILA will hereafter make
modernization loans up to $4,000
for commercial and industrial build
ings, or for installation OF perma-
nent equipment.
PWA's housing division began it's
campaign of government-f1nanced
slum clearance about year ago
and now has under way 18 projects,
including half dozen private prof.
ects which were given PWA loans
before direct Fedora construction
was decided on as fixed policy.
Lumber Costs Down
A total of "A projects are under
construction.
Some authorities are inclined to
1 DeueVe the general Improvement Al
construction is due to generally i'm
proved business conditions, more
plentiful credit. and the accumu-
lated shortage of homes.
A few expect reduced building ma
terial prices to stimulate building
through the summer. Lumber has
gone down about II per cent since
the government abandoned the Bel
cher case, court test of the lumber
codes practice fixing provisions.
Other materials have declined some
what since the Supreme Courts ad-
verse decision on NRA, though Off
Gals believe it is too soon to say how
important factor this is going to
be in the picture.
Prince of Wales IL Tomorrow
/ By United Press
LONDON, June 22.-Still unmar-
ried, and apparently quite contented