The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1944-06-09
. BEHIND THE SCENES
IN WASHINGTON .

also is the future of all public
housing.
Fact number one is that pri-
vate enterprise could not posi-
bly, have done the job itself. 1t
couldn't have met the needs of
low-income families with tenn
porary housing that would have
shown a profit or allowed an
even break TO the builders,
while if permanent homes had
been built in place of the tenn
porary, publicly financed struc-
lures, there would have been a
chaotic postwar collapse in the
real estate market.
In planning war housing, the
rule was for housing officials
of any community to determine
first the amount of outside labor
that would be brought in for
war production industries, then
determine how much of the ad-
ditionally needed housing could
BE- supplied by private enter
prise and absorbed by the COM
munity after the war. Anything
private enterprise couldn't sup
ply with profit and safety, the
federal government took on.
PRIVATE HOUSING $4,000
100000 IN TWO YEARS
Such war housing and remod-
cling as was done by private en-
'terprise was permanent hous-
in on choicer locations-stuff
that would pay out even after
the war. Private capital invest
ed in this way is estimated at
1900, 100000, an average of
$4,000 for each of the million
units. More than 80 per cent of
this private war housing built
in the last two years has carried
Federal Housing Administration
insurance, without which pri-
vate enterprise could not have
risked the job.
Now take look at the public
war housing, which has cost
about $4,000, 900, 900 for the
100000 units, or an average of
less than $4,000 per unit, though
that is an over-simplification.
Publicly built, permanent hous-
ing units averaged over $4,000,
including sites and utilities. De-
mountable units have averaged
$4,000. Temporary dwellings for
families have averaged 2,775,
temporary dormitories $3.50 per
room.
Private builders and realtors
want all this government, tenn
porary housing torn down after
the war is over to remove ii as
a source Of competition. FEEDER
al housing officials concur for
the simple reason that if this
temporary housing is not des-
troyed it will rapidly deterior-
ate into sub-standard, slum
housing of the worst kind.
GOVERNMENTS LOSS
PERHAPS S2,000,0O0,000
How much loss the federal
government will sustain on this
temporary housing, charging {
up to the cost of the war like
dependable ammunition, can't
yet be determined. Perhaps ST.
600, 100000.
War housing has not, how
ever, been operated on a chart
ty basis and is more than break
ing even on its operating costs.
For the last six months &C.
counting period on $4,000 fam
lily dwelling units then in opera
ton the average rent collected
was over S28 per month against
operating costs of SIT per
mOntn.
With half a million publicly
financed temporary war hous-
ing units torn down after the
war is over, the question will
arise as to where the people liv-
ing in them now will 60 then.
Can privately financed housing
care for all these people-per-
haps 100000 in number? II
not, what is to be the role OF
public housing in caring for
people that free enterprise and
private realtors and builders
can't accommodate?