Evening star., 1940-02-10
Accurate Appraisal
OF Building Market
Declared Needed
Self-Adjustment Of
Operations Urged by
Architectural Forum

accurate appraisal of its existing
market in order to adjust its opera
tions more closely to the market,
the Architectural Forum magazine
D declares today in reviewing the Ma
tional Resources Committees report
on consumer expenditures In the
United States.
Housing is still the second larg-
est item of national expense, being
exceeded only by expenditure for
food, the magazine points out, as
serting that the committees find-
ings are important to the build
ing industry because many of the
factors that once were thought to
govern building progress have
changed in the last 10 years.
"Up to 1890 specific knowledge
Of the market was apparently less
important than the general knowl-
edge that the market-whatever 1t
was-was expanding" the Architec-
tural Forum explains. Population
was still steadily on the upswing,
and the development of natural re-
6OuICCS AL 1lCW1y GU CSAA AAoSA ASo
was far from complete.
To-day the picture is different.
Population growth is comparatively
static, the United States has long
since taken its eyes of territorial
expansion, and natural resources are
we'll developed.
Increased Demand Seen.
"But, prophesies of some fatalists
Notwithstanding. buildings market
is and will continue as big as it
ever was. Diminishing population
growth does not necessarily mean
q shrinking of the market.
"On the contrary, 1t may produce
an increased demand for housing.
If lower rate of population. growth
means smaller families, 1t is also
true that the moderate-to-low in
come families, with fewer depend
ents, can better afford to buy houses.
illustrative is the experience of
England and Wales, where, during
the last decade population has been
almost stationary, average family
size has been decreasing, and the
rate of residential building new
dwelling units per family has al
most equaled the United States rate
bf the booming twenties.
But if United States building
does not need to worry about the
approach of stagnation in popula-
ton it is only because Of its greater
efficiency of production, the higher
quality of its materials, the better
balance between the price and value.
of it's products and its increased
attention to the wants of a greater
part of the population.
Accurate Appraisal Urged.
what building needs now more
than ever before" the Architectural
Forum declares, lis an accurate ap-
praisal of its existing market and
then a further self adjustment OF
Its operations to the market.
Timely, therefore, is the publica-
ton of consumer expenditures in
the United States, which shows that
the Nations 100000 consumer
units (non-institutional families and
single Individuals spend $9506. .0O0,-
600 per year for housing $5.285 ,000,-
900 for household operation and
81 .422 900 900 for furnishings.
quite logical is its graphic proof
that housings best per-capita mar
ket is at the top of the income lad
der" the magazine points out
more startling is the extent OF
this truth.
THUS the 100000 consumer
units in the 81 500 and up annual
income group roughly the upper
most third of the NationD spend
$5,l68, 100000 per year on housing,
while the 27,0O0000 units in the
under $500 bracket spend only
s4,338 0O0, 900.
Chances of Purchase Small.
"And just as expenditures for ex-
listing housing per consumer unit
in this latter bracket are compare
lively small, chances that these peo-
pie will buy new houses are also
small--as only a handful of fam
lilies earning less than $500 per
year are able to save enough to buy
a house, no matter how low the
down payment. The average family
In this group operates its household
at deficit.
"On the basis of these carefully
documented findings of the Ma
tional Resources Committee" the
Architectural Forum concludes, "it
is safe to say that the United States
consumers will continue indefinitely
to increase their purchases OF build
ing's products as long as national
purchasing power increases.
"And basic prerequisite to in
creased national purchasing power
is the careful study by building and
all other industries of the spending
habits within their markets"