Evening star., 1935-02-23
50 PCT. SIGNING UP.
IN M0DERN|zAT|0N.
CAMP PA|GN IN D. C..
GIG Now Have Pledged
Themselves to Improve
Their Properties.
MORE WORKERS NEEDED
TO SPEED CANVASS HERE
200 Men Are Desired, Only 20
Now Active-2,2O9 Interviews
Made to Date.

Workers engaged in the Washing
ton modernization convass reported
today that 676 property owners have
signed pledges, approximately double
the number announced last week.
Although an unusually high per-
centage Of the property holders who
we're interviewed actually pledged
themselves to have renovize work done
this Spring, the campaign had pro-
gressed very little way toward its
$6,000,000 goal. and officials were re-
newing their efforts to obtain more
canvasSers.
Joseph Karl GilchriSt, director Of
Federal Housing Administration in the
District, stated that approximately 70
men were working on the project dur
ing the past week, and said he hoped
to increase this number to 200 within
the next few weeks. He expressed
qualification with the progress of the
drive so far.
so Per Cent Sign Up.
The report on the campaign showed
that the workers have made 2,209 in
tervieWs with home and commercial
property owners, of whom nearly 80
per cent have signed pledges to carry
out some type of modernization work.
The valuation of work represented by
the pledges is about S270,000. The
figure last week, which included about
10 days activity, was Sl28,000.
The workers said that the average
valuation of pledges has been run
ming higher in the last week than
in the earlier days of the campaign.
One home owner pledged himself to
carry out S3,500 in modernization,
while there we're a number of cases
in the 81 900 to $4,000 class.
Capital housing officials launched
their radio campaign during the week
with a broadcast by Mrs. John S.
Bennett, president Of the Women's
City Club and head of the women's
division of the local campaign. Tonight
at Sis over VOL Mr.. Gilchrist will
give a talk. Prominent speakers will
go on the air twice weekly during the
campaign to explain modernlzation
and the easily obtained modernization
loans insured by the F. H. A. Febru-
ary % J. R. Stanton, local F. H. A.
field man. will address a meeting of
the ProbuS Club at the Hay Adams
House at 1915 pm.
In regard to operations under Title
II of the housing act, the mutual
mortgage insurance phase, Director
Gilchrist stated that insurance COM
mitments representing $4,000 in
mortgages were issued during the past
week. This figure brought the total
amount of mortgages covered by
F. H. A. insurance here to s248,830,
of which $1,000 represented mort
cages on new construction.
Construction Retarded.
Private building experts and Off
Gals of the housing administration
both agree that the delay in forming
the huge national mortgage aSsocia-
tions, provision for which is made
under Title III of the housing act,
has greatly retarded the construction
revival which it was anticipated the
insured mortgage idea would start
throughout the country.
Mortgage bankers point out that
these associations are depended upon
as a market for the insured mortgage;
they are to be designed to furnish
liquidity for The newtype mortgage.
Since these associations have not been
established and consequently the
liquidity to large degree is lacking
financial institutions have been re-
luctant to make new construction
loans.
Under the terms of the housing act
the associations to be formed with
private funds under Federal super
vision would have a minimum capi-
talization of $5000,000 This high
capitalization has made it impossible
for officials to start the badly needed
associations. Included in the changes
to the housing act proposed to the
Senate and House two weeks ago
is one that would reduce the minimum
capitalization from five to two millions
each.
Another important change would
permit the associations to issue
debentures up to fifteen times the
aggregate par value of outstanding
capital stock instead of up to ten times
the value, as the act in its present
form authorizes
Congress Endorsement Needed.
F. H. A. officials believe it will be
possible to secure the necessary private
backing to establish the mortgage
associations providing Congress in
dorses the proposed changes Estab-
lishment of the associations will en-
courage lending institutions the
country over to pour millions of idle
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