Expects Good Volume of Home Modernization for Winter

Well over one hundred million dollars worth of work has resulted from the autumn campaign for property modernization and repair launched August 15 by the building industry in cocr,peration with lending institutions and the Federal Housing Administration.

Using FHA Title I loans as a gauge, this campaign has almost doubled the volume of modernization work in America and has been the most successful in recent years, exceeding even the autumn of 1935. It gives irrefutable proof that cooperation pays.

While the campaign is continuing into the winter months, much has been accomplished in the banner months of September, October and November.

Before the campaign began, Title I loans were being reported by lending institutions to the FHA for insurance at the rate of around 10,000 loans amounting to about $4,000,000 a week. During the past three months this rate almost doubled, averaging around 18,600 loans amounting to $7,692,0N a week.

Title I loans reported for insurance under the 1939 amendments during September, October, and November 1940 numbered24l,94O and amounted to $97,999,549. This .was the largest amount ever reported in any consecutive three months in FHA history. It exceeded the $88,617,983 reported during the same three months in 1935-the previous record-by 10 per cent.

The number of loans reported this year, however, was smaller than the 262933 reported for the same period in 1935. In that year such items as washing machines, refrigerators, and similar machinery and equipment were eligible for Title I financing, while today such financing is limited to property improvement. The average loan for the 1935 period was $337, compared with E465 for the 1940 period.

As stated before, one reason for the success of this campaign has been the effective cooperation of contractors. building material dealers, financial institutions, and all others connected with building, aided by the FHA.

A survey conducted by the FHA reveals that cooperative advertising campaigns have been common and profitable. In one city 42 firms, companies, and institutions, r€presenting practically every business concern in the city con,nected with building, united in selling modernization to the property owners of their community through newspaper advertising.

In many instances, advertisements of financial institutions sold the idea of modernization rather than easy financing. Many contractors and building materials dealers, on the other hand, emphasized easy financing more than modernization. Practically all featured the FHA plan of easy monthly payments over a period of one to three years.

Much interest has been shown in how this hundred-million-dollar market is being shared. From time to time the FHA has analyzed. its Title I loans to determine the ratios by type of property improved, and by type of improvement, in order to help the building industry determine its markets.

Analysis of the September-November loans has not been made, but it is estimated that the iatios which held for the Title I loans from July 1939 through September 19,10 would be about the same for the past three months. These ratios by type of property follow:

Single-family houses 74.7 per cent of the number of loans and, 67.6 per cent of the amount; dwellings. for two or more families 13.5 and 17.l per cent; commercial and industrial properties 3.7 and7.I per cent; farm structures 4.7 and,4.3 per cent; other types 3.4 and 3.9 per cent.

The ratios by type of improvement for which the major portion of the loan was to be used follow:

New construction 3.5 per cent of the number and 11.9 per cent of the amount; additions and alterations 13.4 and 18.1 per cent; exterior painting 18.1 per cent of both number and amount; interior finish 6.4 and 6.2 per cent; roofing 15.0 and 8.3 per cent; plumbing 8.8 and 8.1 per cent; heating 26.2 and,22.1 per cent; miscellaneous 8.6 and 7.2 pet cent.

While a new record has been established the job of modernizing American homes, commercial, industrial, and farm buildings is not finished.

(Continued on Page 2O)

Four California Citieg Listed Among First Christmas Party Big Success Twenty in Building in U. S.

Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland and San Diego were listed among the first twenty cities in the United States reporting the largest volume of building for the first ten months of 19,10.

Los Angeles was in second place with a total of $63,202,@5; San Francisco was seventh with $26,584,4A3; Oakland was thirteenth with $13,809,078, and San Diego was seventeenth with $11,896,011. New York was in first place rvith a total of $187,099,334.

Following are the twenty cities showing the largest permit.valuations for the first ten months of the current year and comparative figures for 1939 as compiled by Dun & Bradstreet, Inc.:

Nerv York, N. Y.

Los Angeles, Cal.

Detroit, Mich.

Chicago, Ill. ...

Washington, D. C.

Baltimore, Md. ..

San Francisco, Cal.

Philadelphia, Pa.

Houston, Tex.

Cleveland, Ohio

Cincinnati, Ohio

Miami Beach, Fla.

Oakland, Cal.

Atlanta. Ga.

Pittsburgh, Pa.

Miami, Fla. ..

San Diego, Cal.

Seattle. Wash.

Indianapolis, Ind.

St. Louis. Mo. ..

San Francisco Visitors

G. B. McGill, in charge of the Eugene, Oregon, office of Pope & Talbot, Inc., and Mrs. McGill, were San Francisco visitors for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Before leaving for home they will attend the East-West football game.

East Bay Hoo-Hoo Club No. 39 held a most successful Christmas party at the Athens Athletic Club, Oakland, on Friday evening, December 20.

Armand Girard, well known NBC baritone \'\'as master of ceremonies, heading a seven-act all-star shorv in which the prevailing note was comedy.

More than 150 sat down to dinner. President Tom Branson presided and acted as Santa Claus.

Prominent among the out of tou,n visitors were Charlie Shepard, president of Sacramento Hoo-Hoo Club, and Chas. G. Bird of Stockton, representing the Central Valley HooHoo Club.

F. "Tommy" Tomlinson was the lucky winner of two tickets for the East-West football game.

E. S. Coll:n'

E. S. Collins, Portland lumberman, banker and philanthropist, died in Portland on December 18. He rvas born in Cortland, N. Y., in 1865, entered the lumber business in Pennsylvania in 1885 and came to Ostrander, Wash., in 1889.

He was president of the Ostrander Raihvay & Timber Co.; of Curtis, Collins & Holbrook, San Francisco, and Grand Ronde Pine Co.. and was a director of United States National Bank. Portland.

Change Of Office

The offices of the Pacific Portland Cement Company have lreen moved to 4I7 Montgomery Street, San Francisco. The telephone number is GArfield 4100.

Home Modernization for \(/inter

(Continued from Page 19)

Abner H. Ferguson, Federal Housing Administrator, expects modernization and repair work to be maintained at considerable volume through the winter because of the increasing demand in industrial areas for dwelling units, old or new. This demand, he said, is leading to the conversiott of large old dwellings in or near these areas into multi'family houses and to their restoration as paying investments. At the same time, he adds, the conversion of these old homes into modernized dwelling units helps prevent the development of acute housing shortages in these areas.

Defense Demand for Materials \(/ill Not Halt Rise"in Home Building

The fear that the requirements of the Government an.i industry for building materials for defense purposes will result in a sharp decline in home building because of shortage of materials, is apparently due to the tremendous publicity given to the enormous quantities of building materials required by the defense prbgram, rather than the result of calm examination of actual fact, according to Bror Dahlberg, president of The Celotex Corporation.

"While the rate of acceleration in home building witnessed during the past year may be reduced temporarilv, facts indicate that any such cut will be of short duration so far as availability of materials is concerned," said Mr. Dahlberg.

"Attention naturally centers around lumber as the basic framing material in home construction. The Defense Commission needs call for an estimated 4.500.000.000 feet of lumber over a period of one and a half to two years. It is estimated that the first of the year will find approximately 3 billion feet yet to be supplied. This carry-over represents about 10/o of the United States production for 1940, which is sufficient to make the Government an important factor in the lumber market. Horvever, it is obvious that with W% available for other purposes, housing and home building will still have to furnish the lumber producer with his major outlets.

"The same thing is true of other items which go into a home. While concerns producing roofingi plaster, insulation, heating, plumbing and electrical goods have been operating at near capacity, there is no indication that there will be a long sustained actual shortage to cause a halt in home construction. All things considered, it appears that anyone wanting to build a home 1n I94l will not be denied by inability to procure materials. As a matter of fact, F. W. Dodge Corporation, after making a careful study of all factors, particularly those relating to materials and labor, estimate that 1941 will rvitness a 67o increase in one and two familv houses over 1940."

At San Francisco Office

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