Good American Home Program Launched

Shows Americans How to Budget for a Home

A program, which will make it possible for thousands of home-hungry families to own "A Good American Home" and still live within their income, will be launched this fall under the sponsorship of the National Retail Lumber Dealers Association and the U. S. Savings and Loan League.

The "Good American Home Program," which has been ten months in the making, is based on a scientific breakdown of the family budget in the middle and lower income brackets to provide {or "A Good American lfome" ranging in price from $7,500 and under to $12,000.

Based on the economic orinciple that rvith the proper management of the family budget a 'ivell-built house can be purchased for no more than trvo and one-half times the annual family income and paid for u'ith twenty-five per cent of the monthly income, the plan provides a budget blueprint shorving in detail hon' to apportion the remaining seventy-five per cent for food, clothing, medical care, entertainment and other necessities.. Thus, families may purchase ner,v homes without fear of foreclosure, loss of savings and unsound financial risk.

Morton Bodfish, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the U. S. Savings and Loan League of Chicago, Illinois. in commending the program as the ans\ver to the current housing dilemma, says:

"The'Good American Home Program' is a positive step calculated to meet the low cost housing needs of American people u'ho are persistently caught betn'een the pressures of a vast housing'lvant and the continuous high cost of livirg.

"The plan is essentially a national educational program which, at one end, will demonstrate to the consuming public hou' thel' can acquire adequate housing rvithin their income budgets and, on the other end, horv American builders can build homes to meet the mass budget requirements.

"With this as a background, tl-re Good American Home Plan-perfected after months of intense research work rvith schools of home economics, economists, the Federal Government cost of living bureaus, leading architects, publications and many other similar authorities-has developed five types of neu' home designs for houses that can be built at price ranges from under $7,500 to a ceiling of $12,000.

"One of America's leading architects, Randolph Evans of the firm Chapman, Evans and Delehanty, has been conimissioned to create the nerv home designs which are based on the Industry Engineered llome money savings principles."

Charm and practicability are combined in the five attractive home designs created by Randoph Evans. The plans and specifications of these Good American Homes will be available to builders participating in the program.

H. R. Northup, executive vice-president of the National Retail Lumber Dealers Association, who is highly enthus- iastic about these model homes and the sound economic basis of the Good American Home PIan, says:

"It cannot have escaped notice that the action in Washington on housing legislation underscores the need for the 'Good American llome Program'.

"Here we have a situation rvhere there no longer is a shortage of building materials-where funds of financial institutions are up and there is plenty of evidence that people have the monev and just are not spending it.

"The plain fact is tl-rat the real need is to show the public how it can afford to buy todav's homes at today's prices. The national economy needs the many millions that result from normal free spending for housing by thousands of Americans who war-rt to buy homes and r,vould if they did not still fear thev were going to be caught in an economlc squeeze. Home ownership is the u'ay to stabilize shelter costs to fit the family budget."

Cooperating in promoting the "Good American Homc Program" are two nationally known organizations-the National Retail Lumber Dealers Association and the United States Savings and Loan League, representing some 30,000 dealers and financial institutions from coast to coast.

Demonstration homes n'ill be built in about 300 to 50fl communities, and will be equipped and furnished by leading manufacturers of building materials, home appliances. furnishings, food and other items.

The program, n'hich rvill be launched early this fall, will run throuqh the fall of 1950.

Philip W. Bailey on European Trip

Philip W. Bailey, president of the West Coast Stained Shingle Company of Seattle, left for Europe August 16 to explore the possibilities of developing a market for his conpany's Olympic Brand pre-stained shingles and sl-rakes. Bailey, who was in Europe t'n-o years during the war, believes that it is possible to develop a considerable volume of sales, particularly in those countries r'vhere large scalr: rebuilding of devastated areas is necessary. The conrpany, previous to the rrar, shipped small quantities of mr. terial to England, Belgium and Holland rvhere it rvas well received. The main problem norv is the shortage of doilars in those countries. but dollars may be made availabl,-r under the Economic Cooperation Administration.

Bailey expects to be gone thirty days, and will visit England, the Scandinavian Countries, Holland, Belgiunr and France, flying both u'a1's on the ne'lv Boeing Strat.tcruiser now in operation bt- Pan American Airways. lI,' has been promised the full cooperation of the Lumbtr Division of the Economic Cooperation Administration i.-r \\'ashington as 'it ell as the ECA of;frces in Europe.