Evening star., 1945-10-16
Bankers Told
Of Threat in
Public Housing
District Association
Hears Realty Official
Plead Ownership


Warning that administration poll
cies on public spending, and particu-
larly public housing, were a threat"
to private enterprise, including the
construction industry and banking,
Herbert U. Nelson, executive vice
president of the National Association
of Real Estate Boards, last night
called for banking support of the
newly formed National Real Estate
Foundation to mobilize public opin-
ion for defense of the private own
ership of property.
Private property ownership of
farm or home represents the great
safeguard to our way of life," he
told the District of Columbia Bank
ers' Association at their fall meet
ing at the Mayfiower Hotel.
The District bankers thus today
had before them strong appeal to
join the increasingly bitter fight Of
recently organized private enter
prise against the champions Of pub
lie housing. The controversy is cer-
tain to crop out more definitely in
the open during congressional hear
ings on pending housing legislation
Warns Of Pressure"
Mr.. Nelson drew applause from
the bankers with his declaration
that "one of the most priced Of hu-
man rights is the right to own your
Fo Ia ha{
tremendous pressure groups" were
being organized throughout the
country for public housing, and that
the CIO and other organizations
had hundreds of thousands of
votes" behind the move.
Calling on the bankers to support
the Read Estate Foundation for dis
semination of facts in the situation,
he said 1t was important that sound
and conservative" business should
support the small owners Of prop
erty throughout the country against
the threat of social invasion of the
real estate field"
Several trustees of the foundation,
he announced, will be here today
for a meeting to formulate further
plans for action by the foundation,
which now has 5000 trustees
throughout the country. Bruce
Baird, president of National Saw
ings g. Trust Co.. who as presi-
dent of the District Bankers Asso-
citation presided at the meeting, is
one of the trustees, the speaker ex-
planned.
Mr. Nelson warned that public
housing was being used as "po-
litical weapon" by its advocates. He
named Senator Ellender, Demo-
crat, of Louisiana, and Senator Taft,
Republican, of Ohio. as having re-
Gently called on a public housing
conference here to organize senti-
ment in favor of public housing
throughout the nation. He esti-
mated there were about TOO public
housing agencies throughout the
country which would xbe used TO
help promote their campaign. These
agencies, he charged, were prepared
to spend hundreds of millions OF
dollars"
After having worked with former
Assistant Attorney General Thur
man Arnold to uncover what he
called certain ''monopolistic and
restrictive practices" which tended
to increase the cost of construction
throughout the country, Mr.. Nelson
charged that Mr.. Arnold had been
called off" because their attempts
did not constitute good political
practice" especially because of the
influence of organized unions.
Sees Rent Control Danger.
Rent control, if made permanent,
he declared, might be the first step
toward practical extinction of the
construction industry" Such con-
troll he characterized as one of three
major dangers facing the real es-
tate and banking business"
The three main threats, he said,
were rent control as permanent
gag on building; a runaway Federal
budget and the tremendous expan-
sion Of public housing into a poiit-
ical weapon through a $4,000, 900 900
program"
THE Government should encour-
age building" he declared. THE
best way it could encourage new
investment in building would be to
do away with rent control at the
earliest possible moment"
Charging the Federal Govern
ment budget was so "topheavy" that
it was pre-empting tax sources for
merly used by local government,
he said that local governments
now pile all their tax load on real
property, with the result that it is
being taxed out of existence"
Would Liberalize Loans.
Francis x. Pavesich, chief of the
loan guarantee division, Veterans
Administration, reported that pend
ing legislation to amend the So
called CT bill of rights on loans to
veterans was designed to simplify
present Complicated procedure.
Brig. Gen. Samuel L. Howard
Marine Corps hero of Bataan and
Corregidor, told of his experiences
as prisoner of the Japanese in
Manchuria and the circumstances
OF liberation by team of OSS
parachutists.
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