The Wilmington morning star., 1947-10-04
BabsOn Views
Home Building
BY ROGER w. BABsO>

ST. LOUIS, Mo-, Oct. 3.-No..
to specific questions about a' 90
curities, the people out here
the present time, seem most "a
terested in problems concern
the residential building ou4!ool.
Many are asking whether W..
should build now or v.a;.
Others want to know what,oa
they should build at all or b..
an older-type house. I shall d..
cuss these problems TODAY
Specifically, I advise ro...
waiting a little while longa~ 4,
you can possibly do so. pra.
sure on building materials ooa
building labor is still var,,
strong. This means that vo-,.
freedom to insist on quality :,
still restricted. Those of von
who want the best should be- W.
a better position to demand IL
next year than now.
AS far as price is concarno4
I do not believe you will sa,.o
any money by waiting mi,
next year. Your saving will bo
in quality, which, after all i,
most important when you are
making a 20, 30, or 50-year i,
|vestment. 1t also is wise to wait
until you can get firm CON-
tract price and build under an
architects supervision.
The years 1899 through js.s
saw a net increase in families
of about 9,6o0,0Oo. During that
period, however, there wers
only 100000 net dwellings add.
ed to the total. At the beginn:n,
|of this year, 1 therefore esti,
mate an accumulated demand
for about 100000 dwenjng
units. The Bureau of Labor Sta,
tistics reports that there were
35e, 1000 units completed in the
first half Of 1947. During tbe
last half of the year, there
should be 100000 more comple-
tions. Yet, 100000 more
couples will get married in
1947!
Hence, it can be seen that TIE
pressure of demand remains eX-
tremely high. This prevents any
sharp early decline in the cost
of con struction. however.
would predict that during 194S
the price of building will re-
main close to present levels;
but with improved quality OF
construction and less labor
union interference. In fact. I ex.
pect building costs to stabilize
not far from current levels.
If your need for a house is
imminent and pressing, you
might consider buying an old
house. if the location is right.
However, if you can wait, l sug-
gest you wait and then build a
new and modern home. In buy
ing an old house, be doubly Ger
tain that needed repairs are rot
too eX tensive as renovation
costs are now very expensive
In selecting an old house, ao
very careful to avoid extremes
in size and architecture, as the
"out-of-style" types will be TIE
first to crash valuewise VIII.
the demand fades.
Bear in mind that the fut
value of your house will be 6o
erned by the price district ii
which you buy or build. Never
build a SIS, home in a $40
600 price district. If you do, you
may be throwing away S., 900
Immediately. Generally, depre-
citation occurs on the house
only, and appreciation occurs
on the land only; while money
spent on personal desires either
on a new home or on remodel
ing an old one, must be charged
off when reselling. Watch out
for restrictions.
During the months ahead
do not expect any change in
mortgage money situation. }H'
pressure of savings seeking m
vestment should continue 10
interest rates and an easy al
tude on the part of bank aa,
praisers. The biggest denlan
for mortgage money will be ior
dwelling units. High
costs of homes forces many in
the lower-income groups to seek
small rentals in apartment
dwellings. Hence, the demand
for such houses will reach
higher level and there will be
more of some types of govern
ment housing subsidies.