Evening star., 1938-10-15
STABILITY URGED
FOR SUBD|V|DERS
BIight-Proof Neighborhoods
Big Realty Problem,
Saws Mcdonald.

The development of "blight-proof
neighborhoods capable of resisting the
onslaught of time and other deterio-
rating influences is the most important
single problem faced by the building
industry at present. in the opinion of
Federal Housing Administrator Stew
art Mcdonald.
Pointing out the marked progress
made recently in the design and
construction of small houses, Mr.
Mcdonald explained that the industry
must apply to the problem of creating
attractive and lasting neighborhoods
the same skill and ingenuity which
1t has displayed in attacking the prob
lem of producing better small houses
at a more reasonable cost.
Experience seems to prove that
neighborhoods fall to pieces long be-
fore the homes in them have outlived
their usefulness" the administrator
said. ut is our problem, at present, to
discover the basic causes of decay and
to eradicate them from the neighbour
hoods which we create in future
Improvements in the design and con-
struction of homes will mean nothing
if we fail to solve adequately the prob
lens Of creating sound, stable, and
attractive neighborhoods.
Thorough knowledge Needed.
"Of first Importance in such a pro-
gram is the realization on the part of
the developer that he is not merely
a subdivider of land, but builder
of communities. If this fact is real
lied, we will witness a rapid swing
away from the speculative subdivision
Of lots for sale toward the orderly
group development of neighborhoods
of homes for sale"
Planning and successful marketing
of residential community should be
approached, he explained, with a
thorough knowledge of the problems
involved and the best means of meet
ing them. The requirements of good
and convenient living must be met,
costs must be kept within the buying
power of those to be housed. and the
property must be marketed in a man.
ner that will bring a steady and safe
return on the money invested.
"A well-conceived subdivision is To-
Gated, planned and developed to at
tract definite group of potential
purchasers" Mr.. Mcdonald said. The
size of the development should be
such that it can be completed and
sold quickly enough to preclude the
financial burden of carrying vacant
land for long periods. Sales cost
should be minimized by designing the
tract and the houses to appeal to a
large proportion of the known hous-
Ing market.
Haphazard Plans Costly.
Far too often in the past subdi-
visions have been opened simply be-
cause developing company happened
to have a piece of land which hap
pened to cost so much to develop, and
which had to be marked at a set
price, no matter what the existing
demand in the community might be.
1t Is no wonder that in the vast ma
jority of cases such speculative meth
ods of development resulted in dis
astrous failures. A successful neigh
borhood cannot be planned and mar
keted in such haphazard manner.
The possibility of the success of
new speculative lot selling schemes
has been materially lessened by the
fact that the public now has become
neighborhood conscious. The aver
age buyer is definitely interested in
buying improved properties in WELL
conceived communities. Alert build
ers. therefore, are not attempting lot
sales but are engaging in the con-
struction of small or large groups of
homes"
Mr. Mcdonald said that the land
planning section of the F. H. A. is
now receiving large number of cases
for review, more than half of which
Involve the development of new sub
divisions or the extension of estab-
lished and successful subdivisions
That developers are planning the con-
struction of homes and not the sale
of lots alone is demonstrated by the
fact that only small percentage of
cases reviewed by the land-planning
section are now accompanied by ap-
plications for F. H. A. insurance.
A.