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FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK Vol. I I , No. 9 Washington, D. C THE R O A D T O JUNE PROGRESS "History shows that great economic and social forces flow like a tide over communities only half conscious of that which is befalling them. W i s e statesmen foresee what time is thus bringing, and try to shape institutions and mold men's thoughts and purposes in accordance with the change that is silently coming on. "The unwise are those who bring nothing constructive to the process, and who greatly imperil the future of mankind, by leaving great questions to be fought out between ignorant change on the one hand, and ignorant opposition to change, on the other/' John Stuart Mill. 1945 FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK Contents Page W H A T ARE YOUR L O C A L H O U S I N G NEEDS? By: Fred T. Greene, President, FHL Bank of Indianapolis.. 251 W H A T IS THE RISK IN CURRENT LENDING? An analysis of loan ratios based on mortgage recording statistics Vol.11 254 TRAFFIC PLANS A N D RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE The fourth in a series of urban planning articles JUNE 1945 STATISTICAL D A T A The Federal Home Loan Bank Review is published monthly by the Federal Home Loan Bank Administration under the direction of a staff editorial committee. This committee is responsible for interpretations, opinions, summaries/ and other text, except that which appears in the form of official statements and signed articles. Each issue is written for executives of thrift and home-financing institutions, especially those whose organizations are insured by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation and are members of the Federal Home Loan Bank System. Communications concerning 258 New family-dwelling units 269-270 Building costs 270-271 Savings and loan lending 271 -272 Mortgage recordings 272-273 Sales of U. S. war savings bonds 273 F H A activity 273 Federal Home Loan Banks 273 Insured savings and loan associations 274 Quarterly tables 275 REGULAR DEPARTMENTS Bookshelf 262 Worth Repeating 263 Monthly Survey 265 Directory Changes of Member, Federal, and Insured Institutions 274 Home Front 276 material which has been printed or which is desired for publication should be sent to the Editor of the Review, Federal Home Loan Bank Building, Washington 25, Contents of this publication are not copyrighted and may be printed freely D. C • • • The Federal Home Loan Bank Administration assumes no responsibility for material obtained from sources other than itself or other instrumentalities of the Federal Government. 250 SUBSCRIPTION PRICE OF REVIEW.—A copy of the REVIEW is sent to each member and insured institution without charge. To others the annual subscription price, which covers the cost of paper and printing, is $1. Single copies will be sold at 10 cents. Outside of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the insular possessions, subscription price is $1.60; single copies, 15 cents. Subscriptions and orders for individual copies should be sent with remittances to the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C. APPROVED BY T H E BUREAU OF T H E B U D G E T . Federal Home Loan Bank Revie WHAT ARE YOUR LOCAL HOUSING NEEDS? For three years new construction has been frozen with building allowed only to meet essential war needs. VE-Day has brought the first indications of a sizable thaw. How many institutional lenders know with certainty the extent and composition of local housing needs? By F R E D T. G R E E N E , President Federal Home Loan Bank oj Indianapolis • ADEQUATE knowledge of the housing requirements of the various communities of the nation will be more needed in the post-war period than at any time in the past. Practically all students of the subject are agreed that the post-war years will witness a large volume of new home construction to meet the wartime-induced shortages and to provide better homes for the citizens of the country. The task of providing sound financing for the construction of new homes will properly fall upon the private home-financing institutions of the country. If financing is provided for a larger number of new homes than is actually needed in the community, or more than the people of the community can pay for under a sound program, the effects upon the real-estate market would be disastrous as values underlying the loans now in the private lending institutions' portfolios would be weakened. On the other hand, if financing sufficient for providing all of the necessary homes is not made readily available, the home seekers would request governmental aid either in the direct construction or in the financing of these homes, or both. Therefore, the managements of private thrift and homefinancing institutions can adopt sound home-financing policies, both in the interests of the savers and investors whose funds they lend and in the interests of their communities, only where enough information of the right kind is available for the formulation of the most sound and comprehensive policies. Certainly no manufacturer of consumer products would embark upon a large-scale manufacturing and sales program without first endeavoring to measure the market for the product. Nor would an up-to-date manufacturer enter a specific local market for his product without endeavoring to obtain as accurate information as is available about the ability of that market to absorb and pay for the product being offered. Likewise, the individuals or institutions which are financing the manufacturer June 1945 would make sure, insofar as is humanly possible, that the market data upon which the manufacturer was basing his sales and manufacturing quotas were complete and accurate. Need for Market Information The need for adequate market data is probably greater in the home-construction industry than in any other American business. The purchase of a house is usually the largest single financial transaction in the lifetime of an American family and in the aggregate involves funds in the billions of dollars. Thus, from the financial aspects alone, information is important in the protection of the builder, home owner and financing institution. Furthermore, the social and political implications involved in the failure of private enterprise to provide a sufficient quantity of houses of the type that will satisfy the needs of the public are of real importance to the future of private enterprise. The institutions which finance the home-construction industry likewise have a greater need for market information than is required in the financing of practically any other industry. A larger portion of new homes need financing by their purchasers than is true of any other commodity. Moreover, this financing is carried on over a long period of years rather than in periods of 60 or 90 days, or a year or 18 months; as is typical of the financing of sales of other products. In the past, the market information upon which the home-construction industry has operated has usually been hit or miss. The season-to-season judgment of operative builders, based on their current sales experience, has been the basis for determining the number of houses in various price ranges needed in a community. Because of the expected entrance of large-scale builders into the home-construction industry postwar, and because of the necessity for private industry to demonstrate its ability to meet the requirements of the people in the various income groups in the community, the use of more comprehensive market data on the need for homes becomes imperative. 251 Type of Data Needed In studying the need for additional home construction in the community, certain background information would be the first line of approach to the problem. The community's resources that result in community development and in providing employment would first be surveyed. The population statistics of the past should be studied, as they throw light on the probable trends of the future. Perhaps the period of 1919 to 1940 could serve as a basis for studying the trends in the community before the effects'of World War I I were felt. The trends in employment and pa3^rolls, income, purchasing power and cost of living, and the industrial output and business activity of this period would throw considerable light on the peacetime trends of the community. Statistics revealing these pre-war peacetime trends almost always are readily obtainable from sources in each locality, from the Federal Census figures, from publications of the Department of Commerce, and from other sources. When this background material has been gathered and studied to indicate the peacetime trends of the community, the effect of war production on the community should be given consideration. First of all, a survey of the new industries brought to the community by the war should be made and studied with particular emphasis on the likelihood of these industries remaining in the community postwar. The effect of these industries, if they are to remain post-war in the community, on the outlook for employment and the outlook for purchasing power should be carefully weighed because of the direct effect such post-war employment and purchasing power has on the market for housing in the community. Housing Inventory After having made estimates of the outlook for post-war employment and purchasing power and their effect upon the demand for housing accommodations in the city, the next logical step in the local market analysis might well be a survey of the present housing accommodations available, including such things as the number of dwelling units in the city, their type, age, condition and size, occupancy, rental value, and the like. I n many communities, inventories of the housing supply of the city have been taken in recent times by various governmental and private agencies. Frequently these figures can be brought up to date without great additional cost. 252 In this connection, private enterprise in its studies of the existing homes of the city should earmark those areas containing dwelling units that are decidedly substandard so that private enterprise can make plans either for their demolition or for bringing them up to modern-day standards. If this phase, of the local housing inventory is overlooked, private enterprise can be sure that its shortcomings in this respect will be forcefully called to the public's attention from time to time by groups interested in slum clearance and in raising the housing standards in the community. This is a real challenge to private enterprise which can be met only with a comprehensive program that will correct the situation. Merely making statements against public housing and crying "communism" and "socialism" will not satisfy the public demands for improved housing standards for low-income groups. This demand can be met only through a program that actually does something to provide such housing. Certainly the first step toward solution of the problem is to become aware of its existence through an actual study of the local conditions. Cost Data Following the study of the inventory of housing supply of the community, a study of the trends in the increase in dwelling units in the city should be made. Accurate statistics on new construction, remodeling and demolitions of substandard houses are available in most communities. Information on real-estate activity, which is an index of the market, frequently can be obtained through the assistance of local abstractors or title companies which can compile figures accurately reflecting real-estate transfers, mortgage recordings, foreclosures, and related information. Obtaining data on sales prices is not quite so simple a problem. Sales-price data are usually available only in the form of opinions expressed by persons engaged in the real-estate brokerage business. Nevertheless, the building of an index on real-estateprice trends is important in the consideration of the market for new construction in t h a t it is not easily possible to construct new houses in volume when existing houses are selling at prices substantially below their reproduction cost less depreciation and obsolescence. In many communities today, existing houses are selling at more than current cost of reproduction less reasonable depreciation and obsolescence. When such a condition exists, it is good evidence of the need for additional homes in the community. Obviously y Federal Home Loan Bank Review when new houses can be built at costs which compare favorably with the prevailing sales prices of the existing houses, there is an opportunity for the creation of additional new housing units. In a normal market, used houses will sell at prices somewhat less than similar new homes. When existing houses sell above their reproduction cost, that in itself is an indication of the need for additional dwelling units in the community. An index of local residential-construction costs should likewise be made as costs have a large bearing on the market price at which new houses can be offered, and the price in turn has a major effect upon the ability of the market to absorb the new houses. A comprehensive study of this kind should also take into account local tax rates and assessments. A comparison can then be made between these figures and those in suburban communities and other competing cities. Methods for Market Analysis Financing Data If a comprehensive and thorough study of housing is to be made, the various elements of the homeconstruction and home-financing industry in the community should cooperate in financing the study and should endeavor to hire an experienced market analyst. In many parts of the country, the organizations which specialize in market studies would be available to conduct such a market survey. In some communities, a chamber of commerce may have on its staff qualified personnel to carry on such work. The bureaus of business research in various collegiate schools of business might sometimes be available for such studies. Where it is not possible to finance such a study and obtain the services of trained personnel under the sponsorship of an individual organization, these studies might be made through the joint efforts of local savings and loan groups, local real-estate boards, title companies, builders' organizations, and the like. Another important sector in the study of the local market is the availability of mortgage funds and the terms and conditions under which they are available for new construction. Financing is not currently a problem for the construction industry in most communities but it has been in certain periods of the past and may be again in the future. Consequently, anyone who is making a comprehensive study of the community's housing market will wish to survey the available sources of mortgage funds and to obtain information regarding the terms upon which these funds will be provided. All of this material, which has been suggested for a study of the local community, is primarily to be used as a basis for forecasting future trends. Consequently, all available statistics bearing on future trends will be needed. Such things as the in- and outmigration of the community, the number of marriages recorded, birth rates and other vital statistics will be of use in making such forecasts. Fundamentally, to arrive at an estimate of the number of additional dwelling units needed in the community, it is necessary to make estimates as to the number of families needing accommodations at some future time in comparison to the dwelling units now available in the community. To be usable by those interested in home construction and finance, an analysis of the housing market in the community must be made in terms of size of houses needed, types required, rental and sales values supportable, racial occupancy requirements, and suitable locations. In smaller communities where there are a number of experienced men who have much of the information needed for such study available in their own files and in their own minds, data of this kind can be obtained from these individuals through the use of questionnaires and interviews. The data obtained in this manner can then be tested against the statistical information available from the various governmental agencies, real-estate boards, title companies, abstractors and from similar public and private sources. Frequently, it would be possible for persons interested in making a market analysis of their community's housing needs to enlist the aid and support of the local newspapers. In this case much useful data as to the wishes and desires of the home-buying public can be gathered through the use of a questionnaire designed to ascertain the desires of the families of the community who are interested in buying or building new homes. The methods of gathering comprehensive data that are necessary to make the best estimates of future needs in the community will vary according to the size of the community and the resources available for making this study. Certainly all those interested in private home construction and private home financing should make the best use possible of their community resources for getting the soundest data available on the future housing needs of the community, and then provide a comprehensive plan for meeting these needs under private enterprise. June 1945 253 WHAT IS THE RISK IN CURRENT LENDING? It is generally conceded that real-estate prices have risen abruptly during the war years. However, there is question as to how much of this increase is justifiable. The following article presents considerations which throw some light on this subject. • FOR the past few years financial institutions have been carefully watching the upward swing in the prices of residential real estate. With rent control holding the rental index to a level line, there has been no comprehensive moving guide to changes in the supply-demand relationship. Yet symptoms of a rising ground swell in demand have appeared, with spot reports of increasing prices becoming more frequent as time has passed. On the basis of extensive surveys, it has been shown that this advance in sales prices has reached serious proportions, the magnitude in some localities being reported as high as 100 percent. Justifiable Gain That home prices are up is not disputed. The issue lies in the justifiable measure of increment to value for mortgage-lending purposes. Competent authorities point to the record of the past—every major war has, through the burden of destruction and military cost, produced a cheapening of money. For example, over the past 30 years, general commodity prices have not returned to the pre-World War I levels of 1914. In the case of that war, inflation (here taken to mean price increases subsequently offset by declines) occurred after the cessation of hostilities. Yet, can this be relied upon as the pattern for the present? The record shows that, during the previous postwar periods reconstruction or the overhauling of pent-up demand has frequently been a secondary influence which has increased business activity, the most important factor usually being some new major stride in pursuit of industrial or commercial opportunity. Following the Civil War it was the development of heavy industries and the railroads. After the first World War there was still further industrial expansion which was typified, in large part, by a high volume of home building and the manufacture of automobiles merchantable to almost all income groups. Is there another such expansion in sight for post-World War II? The airplane, or possibly lowcost housing? Our national post-war goal has been set at 254 55,000,000 jobs, but even if we achieve this goal ]t is not anticipated that the gross national product in peacetime will be as great as in the past two and one-half years. In terms of 1939 dollars, it is estimated that it would be about $140,000,000,000. Yet, it should be noted that this would be based on a peacetime economy and be predicated in part upon replacement and expansion of our housing stock. Recognized Increases Only experience can define " justifiable" as applied to the present upward price movement. However, it is interesting to observe the measure of increment which mortgage-lending institutions seem to have recognized in determining value for their lending purposes. On a national basis, covering all types of lenders, this can be done only by statistical analysis. Thus, the following data are based entirely upon a study of trends in nonfarm mortgage recordings of $20,000 or less. Admittedly, this process makes no allowance for margin of error. However, the procedure is believed to be of significance in that conclusions err on the conservative side. An institution conducting a similar study in its own locality would be able to correct for much of this deviation in that it could introduce factual data where this analysis must rely upon assumptions. For purposes of this article, it is assumed that it is possible to derive a " stand-up value" for any residential property. This is not a denial of reasonable and unforeseen increments to value in the future. Rather, it is merely the presumption that on the basis of past experience there may be determined a price which might be paid by an average, well informed purchaser, buying in a typical market and without duress. Clearly, in local application, the period selected as a benchmark should reflect anticipated trends in the local economy. For example, in a region of declining activity, assumptions of an active market would not be reasonable. The second major assumption is that ratios to property values for loans of all purposes (new construction, home purchase, refinancing, repair and reconditioning) remain constant throughout the time Federal Home Loan Bank Review series. On the face of it, this is an assumption contrary to fact. However, its effect produces a conservative conclusion, and data on this point as related to recordings are unobtainable. The following analysis is based exclusively on the acceptance of these two points. Nonfarm Recordings Compilations of mortgage recordings for all lenders throughout the country are available only as far back as 1939. For this reason, as well as because 1939 was a year of peacetime activity, not reflecting the subsequent large volumes of defense and war expenditures, it is accepted as a base year from which changes in loan size and derived values will be computed. Here again, it should be noted that some rise above the level of real-estate prices in this base year may prove to be sound. At the present, though, it is impossible to determine the portion of increment which will endure. In the base year, 1939, all lenders recorded a total of 1,288,032 mortgage instruments in the face amount of $3,506,563,000. In 1944, a somewhat higher number of mortgages, 1,446,548, were recorded in the amount of $4,610,629,000. Thus, the average recording—a composite of loans for all purposes— rose from $2,722 in 1939 to $3,187 in 1944, an increase of 17 percent above the base average. For the first quarter of 1945, the average mortgage recorded amounted to $3,338, about 23 percent above the annual average of 1939. Ratio to Stand-up Value This upward movement in the size of the average loan recorded is evidence that lenders of all types are giving recognition to a partial rise in prices by admitting an increase in value, as defined for mortgage-lending purposes. Without pausing to go into the merits or stability of higher sales prices, it is proposed to examine the ratios that current loans might bear to the derived 1939 value, accepted for discussion as stand-up value. Is such a comparison sound? Consider that for three years the volume of new construction has been geared to that quantity and quality of housing consistent with our war needs. This means that most current lending for home purchase is concentrated in transactions involving the same housing stock as in the base year of 1939. The only exception is that it is three years older and that during this time repairs have been at a minimum. Thus, it can be seen that, to all intents and purposes, transactions in the periods June 194S under consideration are involving substantially the same stock of properties. Clearly, interest centers about the high-ratio loans—now almost exclusively those for home purchase since new construction has been virtually eliminated. Repair and reconditioning loans are not believed to show any substantial ratio change since they are subject to priority limitations, as is new construction, and also fall within the purview of Regulation W of the Federal Reserve Board. By a process of elimination, the bulk of the gain in average loan size may be identified with those loans coming under the heading of home purchase. The hypothetical cases described below are considered as loans in this category. On the basis of the foregoing assumptions, what ratio does lending in the current period by all mortgagees bear to stand-up value? Earlier, it was observed that the average mortgage recorded in 1939 amounted to $2,722; that in 1944 it had increased to $3,187 and for the first quarter of the current year stood at $3,338. The following table shows five loan ratios in common use in financing home purchase and construction. The second and third columns show the index (1939 average recordi n g s 100) of the average loan amount recorded in the full year 1944 and the first quarter of 1945. The ratios of the hypothetical loans to derived (stand-up) value of 1939 have been obtained by applying the respective index figures to the ratios to current values shown in the first column. Since the following table is based on mortgages recorded, it reflects only that portion of the rise in real-estate prices which lenders have accepted in business practice. Correspondingly, increases which Index of average recording (1939=100) Ratio to derived 1939 (stand-up) value 1944 1st Quarter 1945 1944 1st Quarter 1945 Percent 117 117 117 117 117 Percent 122. 6 122. 6 122. 6 122. 6 122. 6 Percent 58. 5 70. 2 81. 9 93.5 105. 3 Percent 61.3 73.5 85.8 97. 9 110.3 Ratio to current value Percent A B C D E 50__ 60__ 70__ 80__ 90__ The second and third columns in the table above relate the average mortgage of $20,000 or less recorded in the full year 1944 and the first quarter of 1945 to the average recording in 1939. The ratio of loans to derived 1939 (stand-up) value is obtained by applying these index figures to the loan ratios appearing in the first column. 255 they have refused to countenance and which have been met by larger cash down payment are excluded. To some extent, these additional gains may be admitted by some mortgagees who would report their loans at a correspondingly lower ratio to current value than would be reflected here. Case Analyses Case A represents a loan of 50 percent of current derived value. Applying the index of the average mortgage recorded in 1944 gives a ratio to stand-up of 58.5 percent. However, such a loan made in the first three months of 1945 would carry the ratio to stand-up to 61.3 percent. Moving down the first column—ratio of loan to current value—it will be noted that there is a progression of 10 points between each hypothetical case. A glance at the ratio of 1944 loans to 1939 stand-up value and a look at the corresponding column for the first quarter of 1945 shows that there is a progression of about 11.7 percent of stand-up between cases in the 1944 column and a gap of about 12.3 percent of stand-up in the first three months of 1945. Thus, the higher the ratio, the more deceptively acute becomes the risk on a rising market, particularly when current values are running higher than normal reproduction costs or sustained real-estate market expectations. Case D at 80-percent financing represents the limit for many lenders, with the exception of those operating under Title VI of the National Housing Act, which makes possible loans up to 90 percent of appraised value. Here, though, it should be recalled that F H A regulations have consistently endeavored to preclude the insurance of inflated loans by judicious control of lending valuation as well as by construction inspections to prevent deterioriation in the quality of building. These figures give added meaning to the oftrepeated warnings of inflationary trends in real-estate prices finding their way into mortgage lending. Precisely where the danger point lies, no one can tell, yet it is not so much the fine dividing line as it is the general condition. If, as was suggested earlier, postwar activity finds expression in the mass production of low-cost homes, this is bound to produce some change if not reversal in the present movement of prices for residential properties. Naturally, such a development would not affect the nation uniformly, nor would all property prices within a given area necessarily respond in the same manner. Yet no community can be assured of a continuation of 256 present circumstances. A reversal might mean severe losses to lending institutions in addition to wiping out relatively large equities established by present purchasers through cash down payments on the basis of prices today. A Hypothetical Loan Reduced to absolute amounts, what do the figures in the foregoing table mean in terms of an actual loan? The property, for purposes of illustration, will be assumed to have a stand-up value (1939 price) of $10,000. Applying the average percent increase in recordings (the first three months of the present year over the average recording in 1939) to the stand-up value of $10,000 yields a hypothetical lending value of $12,260 in the early spring of 1945. Thus, a loan of 80 percent of this current value would aniount to $9,808, only $192 less than the $10,000 price of 1939 which is taken as stand-up. The foregoing chart illustrates the relation of three loans—60-percent financing, 80 percent and 90 percent—to the stand-up value of $10,000. For purposes of illustration, the loan curve has been plotted in each case to 15 years maturity. This loan term has not been derived from mortgage recording statistics. Remedial Action Lenders are by no means oblivious to the implications of danger in current price trends. Evidence of this is to be found in the diversity of loan plans designed to discount excessive gains or reduce rapidly the added risks resulting from wartime increment in loan size. Parenthetically, some may wonder how much longer accelerated amortization may be relied Federal Home Loan Bank Review on to reduce high risk. The chart shown on this page is illustrative of the principal features of most of these plans, showing the effect of both shortened loan terms and accelerated amortization provision. Applied to the hypothetical property in the above discussion, this traces the loan-balance lines for 80-percent financing on a current value of $12,260 and shows their relation to the stand-up value of $10,000. The broken,line represents the unpaid balance of an $8,000 loan (80 percent of stand-up value) to 180 months. The solid line portrays the extent to which additional risk would be taken on a $9,800 loan (80 percent of current value and 98 percent of stand-up value) if the increased loan amount is not accompanied by a corresponding shortening of term or acceleration of amortization in the early period of the loan. The dotted line demonstrates that, with the loan period reduced to 132 months, the additional risk would be written off entirely within 61 months. On the other hand, were the period not shortened, the unpaid balance of the $9,800 loan would be written down to about $7,250 after 61 months instead of the $5,920 which is shown for each of the other plans. placed in their portfolios bears little, if any, resemblance to these data. The purpose of this article is to illustrate the dangers inherent in lending on inflated valuations. The selection of 1939 as a base year for stand-up values has been accepted for purposes of discussion only. The institution developing its own study of local lending and valuation trends would, naturally, select a market period, or individual valuation of property securing each loan, in accordance with its own judgment as to what the local economy could support on an enduring basis. In illustrating that high-percentage lending on rising values which cannot endure becomes increasingly precarious as the loan ratio increases, no new facts have been brought to light. The attempt has been to relate the rising trend in average recordings to the known upward movement in real-estate prices and to interpret these in such manner as will identify specifically the nature of the danger involved in these added risks of loan-valuation increments. The specific line of danger, though, must be ascertained by local market studies which each lending institution is best qualified to undertake. Construction Order L-4I Amended Following Victory in Europe Significance What is the purpose of this analysis? I t is based on hypothetical loans and loan valuations derived from statistics relating to mortgage recordings of $20,000 or under, as well as upon several assumptions which may conform to the experience of some mortgagees. Others may find that the trend in loans June 1945 647118—45 H AT the end of last month, the War Production Board announced the first relaxation in control over construction activities. The principal changes made by the amended order are the raising of the annual dollar-value limited on various types of construction that may be undertaken without WPB authorization, and expansion of other exemptions from the provisions of the order. The most significant change to home-financing institutions was that relating to repairs, maintenance, alterations and new construction on one- to fivefamily dwellings. Formerly, this was restricted to $200 a year. The terms of the amended order are as follows: One-family house, including a farmhouse, $1,000; two-family house, $2,000; ftiree-family house, $3,000; four-family house, $4,000; and five-family house, $5,000. Order L-41-d, which provided exemptions for maintenance and repair of asbestos siding and roofing, was revoked. The increased allowances for residential construction and repairs now in L-41 make this order unnecessary. 257 2 TRAFFIC AND RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE This is the fourth of a series of articles on urban planning.1 Having previously considered planning problems, the significance of basic data, and land use, this article presents traffic as a cause of residential blight and discusses proposals for traffic control. • YOU have wondered why, in this wartime housing market, property over in "Downtown Neighborhood" is deteriorating so rapidly—resulting in higher occupancy turnover. Its neighbors are downat-the-heel houses, one of which has already become a rooming house, another a tailoring shop, or perhaps a beauty parlor. Down the block a home mechanic has opened his backyard garage for automobile repair; at the corner an old house has given way to a super-garage serving the new flood of traffic resulting from the influx of war workers, the heavy trucking and the increased use of the "Downtown Neighborhood" facilities and services. Is Traffic to Blame? Study the city engineer's traffic-flow map. See how traffic divides and strangles residential development within reach of the city's center. Indiscriminately, almost every street fanning out from places of commerce and industry carries trucks, passenger cars and busses. Small wonder, then, that tenants, fearing for the safety of their children, shaken by the noise and clamor of traffic, seek surroundings more conducive to good living. Nor is your community alone in its experience. Property values in Forest Hills Gardens, New York, for half a block to a block in from the edge of the development, have been lowered by the effect of heavy traffic on the parkway; the interior of the development is also suffering from objectionable traffic on its through streets. In Kingsport, Tennessee, a state highway channels traffic through business and residential areas. With the doubling of Kingsport's population, commercial development followed the traffic, intruding upon residential districts, while areas which were planned for business are still lying idle. The intrusion of commercial development and heavy traffic into residential districts is followed by turnover in tenants, a smaller allotment for maintenance, physical deterioration of property and neighborhood, and the prospect of lower tax payments and rising costs of public services. i Prepared by Reginald R. Isaacs and Victor H. Bringe of the Urban Development Division, National Housing Agency. 258 Traffic and the Growth of Cities Before 1880 the small American town was in many respects just what a community should be: quiet livable, spacious, blended with the countryside; all of the streets, but one or two, were residential. The area of the town was limited; both social and business activities fell well within reasonable pedestrian or horse and buggy distances, which generally were not more than two to two and one-half miles from the town's center. This pleasant equilibrium, however, was soon upset. I n the last two decades of the nineteenth century, immigration accelerated the expansion of our population, and many new citizens sank their roots in our large cities. At about the same time streetcar systems were introduced, contributing to the development of the large metropolitan area as we know it today. As cities grew, there was incentive to develop these municipal transportation systems with the result that the area of potential urban development mushroomed to five miles within the next few decades. As the automobile became an economical means of popular transportation the radius grew to 15 or 20 miles. In a haphazard way cities hastened to adapt themselves to this new vehicle. Without realizing the implications of such steps, streets were hurriedly paved, later widened. In their effort to attract trade through a hasty and ill-conceived adaptation to new transport media, many cities paved the way to their own undoing. The potential area of urbanization was expanding rapidly as the speed of transport increased, but changes were taking place slowly in legal boundaries which denned the area of the local taxing authority. Often the flow of population to cities slackened or actually reversed itself as people sought to avoid the congestion, noise and dirt of the downtown area. The flight to the suburbs represented not only a loss of population but a loss of tax revenues. Yet it was not until the situation became acute that serious attention was paid to the deterioration of downtown realty. In the meantime the development of elaborate traffic systems placed these former residential neighborhoods in need of complete replanning. Federal Home Loan Bank Review Traffic and Decentralization Nor are the conditions of "Downtown Neighborhood" the sole ill effects of unplanned traffic. In many cities the decay of central areas has been hastened by the building of highways, streets and transit services to scattered subdivisions in the suburbs. Decentralization does not assure desirable environment; sometimes the traffic hazards are as bad or worse than in older abandoned areas. The traffic-flow map illustrates clearly the advanced stage that decentralization has reached in the urban area. ^Residential and commercial development follow major roadways leading out from cities and concentrate at transit intersections where large numbers of people alight from and board transportation vehicles; scattered development in outlying suburban areas is encouraged by the provision of good fast routes from the center. In horse and buggy days, roads followed the pattern of settled areas; quite naturally, new development occurred at crossroads and other strategic points. As a result of increased traffic, heterogeneous and unattractive commerce, sporadic housing and billboards sprang up along the length of the highway. For the 30-mile length of the Washington-Baltimore Boulevard outside of the two cities, there are over 600 commercial establishments and almost 700 houses having access to the highway, or an average of about one hazard per 125 feet. The private investment in such housing has proven a loss, notwithstanding the potential commercial value of a few "choice" locations. When roadside protection is left largely to the whim of the subdivider, discontinuous, sporadic suburban settlements, or ribbon developments appear along highways, with undeveloped areas between them. These greatly increase the cost and difficulties of providing the essential public facilities and services. The Cost of Unplanned Traffic I t has been estimated that traffic congestion in M a n h a t t a n costs $500,000 per day. This waste is not confined to the largest cities. Through careful observation in Worcester, Massachusetts, it has been estimated that congestion costs $35,000 per day; in Cincinnati, $100,000 per day. 1 Few realize that an outmoded street system, due to inadequacy or complete absence of neighborhood planning, is the cause of a large part of the increasing rate of traffic accidents and deaths. Contrary to popular belief, accidents are not concentrated in the central business districts; Syracuse has reported 40 to 50 percent of such accidents in residential areas. The costs of accident prevention are paid for by taxation on real estate. The haphazard use of all varieties of vehicles on all sorts of streets and roadways has resulted in unanticipated costs of maintenance. Few residential » Urban Planning and Land Policies, National Resources Committee, 1939. GROWTH OF SETTLED AREAS IN KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI 1855 1895 1917 1930 SOURCE-- Federal Housing Adm. Jam 1945 259 streets are built for trucking and heavy busses; consequently macadam, oiled, graveled, brick and block roads have had to be replaced by heavy-duty reinforced concrete roads at high cost—resulting in heavier taxes, direct and benefit assessments. Increased, but not planned-for, traffic results in demands for wider streets. Yonkers, New York, spent a tremendous sum to accomplish street widening and found that the additional width was promptly used for parking. The practice of storing cars along the curb makes many of the city's major streets inefficient. I t is debatable whether the use of 25 to 30 percent of the total paved area for parking can be economically justified, although some allowance must be made for stops to discharge passengers and for emergency repairs. Yet off-the-street parking must be both convenient and economical if it is to be enforced. In recent years there has been a trend toward making such facilities compulsory. For example, the Greenwich, Long Island, ordinance requires multiple-family units to provide automobile storage capacity in the ratio of two spaces to every three family units, while in New Rochelle, New York, the ratio is one storage space to every two family units with garages located within the building, beneath the side or rear yards, or courts, or in a separate structure. The ordinances and regulations of many cities require far greater street construction than necessary EXISTING TRAFFIC VOLUME FLOWS MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA 1940 for normal travel. For instance, the conventional grid patterns predicate monotonous, uninteresting streets, dangerous intersections, short blocks and unnecessary side streets resulting in high improvement costs. The Chicago code requires t h a t streets be platted eight to the mile in one direction and 16 to the mile in the other, allowing widths of 66 feet (and a 16-foot alley at the rear of every lot); such requirements result in a dedication of 32 percent of the land for street purposes, a loss to the subdivide^ and unnecessary expense to the home buyer. The Appraiser Looks at Traffic The Federal Housing Administration has recognized the dangers of indiscriminate traffic in residential areas. "If a high speed traffic artery passes directly through a desirable neighborhood area with similar development on each side of the artery, the noise and attendant danger constitute an adverse influence . . . The same principles apply when rating locations on ribbon developments along highways. Such locations tend to attract uses which are often considered, from a residential standpoint, as nuisances." * In Rental Housing Standards (1940), the F H A recommends: "Minor residential streets shall be designed to discourage through traffic and create as few intersections as possible *vith the main thoroughfares. Streets leading to the site . . . should provide safe and convenient access at all times." Based upon these and other criteria, the agency appraises individual properties, giving penalty scores where proper traffic and home relationships have been ignored. The criteria for desirable residential developments used by the Mayor's Committee on City Planning of New York (1938) include no serious invasion by heavy traffic, and low traffic accident rates. What is Being Done? The variety of problems caused by obsolete design of streets, transit lines, terminal and parking facilities almost paralyzes movement in many cities. The results are observable in the rapid depreciation of residential neighborhoods, as well as in the declining values of central business and industrial districts. What will the results be if the prophecy of the American Safety Foundation for the post-war period is anywhere near correct? Its studies indicate a 30-percent increase in the number of v hides and a 50-percent gain in mileage to be t r a v ed. The Public Roads Administration in a study, SOURCE:- CITY PLANNING COMMISSION MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. 260 i Underwriting Manual, Federal Housing Administration, 1938. Federal Home Loan Bank Review Toll Roads and Free Roads, (1939) anticipates that the total vehicle mileage will double by 1960. Unless means can be found to make faster and more convenient the movement of goods and persons in cities, we may anticipate further decline in property values and uneconomic scattering of city dwellers over wide suburban areas. What measures are available or planned to provide satisfactory circulation of traffic and conserve existing real-estate values? All levels of government, Federal, state and local, are moving to meet this problem. In 1944, President Roosevelt transmitted to Congress the report of the National Committee on Interregional Highways, which devoted considerable attention to the problems of urban areas. Shortly after, the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1944 was passed. For the first time, substantial funds were authorized for roads in urban areas. Distribution of these funds was entrusted to the Public Roads Administration. Among the provisions of the Act are: $125,000,000 yearly will be granted by the Federal Government for urban roads for the first three years after the war. Roads in urban areas are to be planned on a metropolitan-wide basis by all the units of government concerned. State highway departments will be responsible for these projects; state expenditures will at least match Federal grants and may surpass them. The municipality may be called upon by its state government to contribute toward the cost of projects. Under almost any conceivable post-war conditions, large sums will be spent for urban roads. Municipal Measures What measures have the municipalities taken to ease their traffic problems? The New York City Planning Commission is required by its charter to include plans for all "transportation" in its master plan. The Transit Board and the Regional Association of Cleveland have proposed highway and transit plans, designed to be realized step by step, over a period of time. Chicago already enjoys the benefits of its first achievements in planning for both vehicular traffic and mass transit. The City Planning Commission of Minneapolis, in its survey of traffic on major streets, has made recommendations for the improvement of traffic facilities to channel through traffic around residential areas, and for the accomplishment of the full program in easy stages. Many other cities are planning for traffic needs on a metroJune 1945 647118—45 3 politan-wide basis with the state and Federal officials concerned. Local planning commissions are concerned with the stabilization of neighborhoods by protection from indiscriminate traffic. Proposals have generally included recommendations for a few major and secondary streets to channel the heavy traffic around residential areas, protected from noise and danger by well landscaped buffer strips. Consideration is given to street design in relation to volume and kind of traffic: a 60-foot street right-of-way is sufficient to serve multiple-family and apartment developments, 50 feet is adequate in single-family areas, and as low as 40 feet in cul-de-sac arrangements. Along with narrower roads, lighter and more economical construction is suggested as adequate for anticipated (and planned-for) smaller traffic volume. One objective of progressive traffic planning is that only those vehicles shall enter the community which actually have business there. There are many communities in which this principle has taken concrete form; the first was built in 1929 at Radburn, New Jersey. Here homes turn their back doors on the street, fronting instead on green parks and safe playgrounds inside the large residential areas. Through traffic in residential sections is discouraged by the discontinuous pattern of local streets. Foot traffic has its own walkways separated from moving cars by over and underpasses. Similar examples of planning are to be found at Green Acres, Long Island; Greenbelt, Maryland; Buckingham, Virginia; Cerritos Park and Baldwin Hills Village, California; and in many temporary and permanent war-built communities. It is physically impossible to provide complete facilities for every individual motorist from home to work areas. Mass transit, by using street space more efficiently and economically, may provide the logical solution to this problem. However, in the past, transit policies sometimes contributed to overconcentration of population and thus to the unbalanced real-estate values resulting from this condition. The problem then is how to utilize urban transit as the most effective tool in furthering the desirable development of urban places in accordance with long-range comprehensive community plans. What are some of the factors which must be considered if urban traffic needs are to be properly met; if residential values, commerce and trade, and industrial convenience are to be safeguarded in urban areas? (Continued on p. 274) 261 BUILDING OR BUYING A HOUSE: By B. K. Johnstone & Associates. 1945. McGraw-Hill Book Co., 330 West 42d St., New York 18, N. Y. $2.75. Addressed to the individual who intends to live in the house he builds or buys, Building or Buying a House is a timely and worthwhile addition to the growing literature on the subject. Recognizing that "building or buying a home represents one of the largest financial transactions of a lifetime for the average family/' the authors have combined a mass of complicated and widely divergent information into a simple and specific guide to sound home ownership. The five authors, all members of the architectural staff of Pennsylvania State College, have achieved that rare phenomenon, an understandable book about highly technical subjects written in non-technical terms for the layman. Where technical terminology is essential to a clear presentation of the facts, exact meanings have been carefully defined and illustrated. Avoidance of the numerous pitfalls of unsound home ownership requires an; honest and knowing evaluation of all the potential risks involved. This does not mean that the prospective homeowner should himself be an expert financier, lawyer, architect and contractor, but rather that he should recognize the type and extent of the information he needs to make a decision valid in his particular circumstances. This book gives him a yardstick to measure the risk of home ownership for his family. In logical sequence the book covers the problems of financing, site selection, house planning, plan analysis, standards of house construction, cost analysis, choice of architect and contractor, working drawings and specifications, and all possible legal complications. General principles are laid down and specific examples are given to illustrate their application. The authors point out that cheapest initial costs are not always the least 262 expensive in the long run. Though it is possible to pare costs through substitutions, only an experienced craftsman can determine what and where to substitute without sacrificing quality. Likewise, the authors stress that the added initial cost of employing a professional architect, a lawyer, and a reputable skilled contractor reduces the homeowner's expense in the long run in that he can rely on men qualified in their own fields to judge whether he receives what he pays for. A MILLION HOMES A YEAR: By Dorothy Rosenman. Har court, Brace & Co., 383 Madison Ave., New York 17, N. Y. $3.50. This work represents Mrs. Rosenman's analysis of problems in housing and related fields and her critique of various plans advanced from diverse quarters for their solution. Based on extensive examination of construction costs, land use, redevelopment, taxes, urban planning, ownership and tenancy, the author undertakes to point a course of action which is intended to lead to her three goals: (1) lower-cost homes; (2) stable home values; and (3) the provision of "homes in a convenient, prosperous, and pleasurable milieu. ". . . To be successful, the capitalistic system must find a way either to raise present wage levels without raising the present costs of essentials, or to lower the present costs of essentials so that they will be within the reach of present wage levels." Applying the foregoing alternative to housing, Mrs. Rosenman concludes that cost reduction must be effected in all components of housing if a gross reduction sufficient to achieve the first goal is to be realized. The second goal, stability of home values, demands not only the maintenance of individual property, but careful neighborhood planning and maintenance. The third, environment, requires planning to integrate the community within its surrounding region and the region with the nation. On this subject, Mrs. Rosenman states that "a national planning agency . . . should inventory the natural, commercial, and industrial resources of this country. It should chart their trends and influences and make these facts available to the people of the United States and their Congress, to state, county, and municipal officials, including planning bodies on all of these levels . . ." The book emphasizes that the time has come when planning for urban housing redevelopment—the clearance of slums and the provision of adequate low-cost or low-rent accommodations— must materialize. Differences must be resolved, tenements razed, and well planned developments erected. HOME OWNERSHIP: IS IT SOUND? By John P. Dean. 1945. Harper & Bros., 49 East 33d St., New York 16, N. Y. $2.50. The answer to the question posed is: "For some families, some houses represent wise buys; but a culture and real estate industry that give blanket endorsement to ownership fail to indicate which families and which houses." The indictments presented will not make particularly pleasant reading to those connected with building, selling and financing homes, but every page contains a challenge to all who are anxious to see extensive home ownership on a sound basis. Because of the existing promotional pressures— by Government as well as industry— the author concentrates on presenting, for the prospective home-buying family, an analysis of why ownership does not necessarily represent a sound and economical solution to their housing needs; provide security; make a pood investment; or help to solve the over-all housing problem of the country. In conclusion, some suggestions are made for improving the current situation. The purchase of a home on an amortized basis is a long-term undertaking and family temperament, needs, neighborhood conditions, job locations Federal Home Loan Bank Review and incomes have a way of changing without regard to previously contracted obligations. T r u e , h o m e ownership provides an escape from "landlord trouble" but frequently it does not prove so economical as the purchaser had anticipated. Local assessments, hidden taxes and the twin bogeys of depreciation and deterioration too often upset calculations. Nor does the process of acquiring one's own home guarantee security. Two surveys are quoted showing that "40 percent of the renters over forty years of age had at one time owned their homes,'' and that "single-family foreclosures (not including farms) 1926-40 equal more than one-sixth of the single-family owner-occupied residences in the urban areas of the United States in 1930." Neither does buying a home always represent a good investment, either as a means of securing lower housing costs or of insuring a good eventual selling price. The contention is not that home ownership cannot be a good investment but that "society does little to help a would-be owner to know how good or how bad for him is a specific purchase at a given time." The author feels that Government encouragement of the "small down payment and long-term amortization arrangements necessary to reach the mass market naturally mean more risky marginal buying." On the other hand, the Registered Home Program was a good development unfortunately cut short by the war. Also under the FH A plan, the easier terms of purchase (although not an unmixed blessing) and the setting of certain standards of design, construction and neighborhood have made it harder for a family to make a serious mistake in the purchase of a home. A checklist for the prospective purchaser gives a list of 15 searching questions to indicate to a family whether or not it is psychologically and financially equipped to set out on the long road to home ownership. The constructive proposals made include discouragement of those who cannot wisely buy, protection of those who do buy, provision of facilities for those who buy and must move to another city, and greater emphasis on providing a volume of homes and business through more good rental quarters. June 1945 * * WORTH REPEATING * * HOUSES OVER 40: " S o m e y e a r s ago there was a considerable stir over the effects of technological unemployment on the older wage earners. Out of it came a reassuring book entitled 'Life Begins at Forty.' Then came the war and there were jobs for everybody, regardless of age. "So far no one has sought to prove that life for a house begins at forty, but otherwise there are certain parallels between employment and real estate. For a variety of reasons older homes became something of a drug on the market during the 1930's—to their physical and financial detriment. During the war they have been in much greater demand, especially in war production centers. After the war, what with plans for a vast new housing program, they may again suffer from the lack of what salesmen call marketability. ". . . Sound master planning may slow down the deterioration of urban districts where new construction is carried out, but physical upkeep and the maintenance of value of millions of older homes—most of them occupied and many of them soundly constructed—-will remain a problem. It is a broader problem than preservation of the owners' investment; for a long time these residences will continue to constitute the bulk of the housing in our cities and towns, and what happens to them is bound to have major effect on efforts to improve the economic and social life of the nation." Tomorrow's Town, April 1945. INTEREST RATES: "It seems clear to me that the savings and loan associations, like all financial institutions, must reconcile themselves to a lower average rate of return on their earning assets than they have known in the past. Even if interest rates should go no lower, the savings and loan associations must adjust themselves for some time to a continued decline in their average rate of return on mortgage loans. Moreover, apart from the question of the national debt, other Government policies will tend to hold down interest rates. It is a fact that a large part of all loans will, in one way or another, be guaranteed by the Government. In the field of residential housing loans the G. I. Bill of Rights will have an important influence in setting the upper limits on interest rates. This bill, together with the effects of mortgage insurance, with which we have already had a decade of experience, is bound to play an important part in preventing the return of 'the good old days' in interest rates " Elliott V. Bell, before the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York. COMMON GOAL: ''President Roosevelt, who always had a deep interest in the shelter needs of the nation, recognized in his Economic Bill of Rights—'the right of every family to a decent home.' This would clearly seem to be an attainable goal in terms of present-day technical and economic development. But it is a goal that we were far from having reached at any time in the past, and it is the big challenge that faces us for the future. There is a clear relationship between good citizenship and a decent home in an attractive neighborhood in a well-planned city. Our goal is a nation of good homes. ". . . In undertaking that job, we will want to draw on the best experience wherever it may be found. And I can assure you that our experience here will be an open book for our friends in housing in other lands, and that we will stand ready at all times to share that experience in the interests of our common goal of building a better world after victory." John B. Blandford, Jr., before Diplomatic Corps, Washington, D . C , April 18, 1945. DUAL NECESSITY: "More than $40 billion of war bonds must be sold this year if we are to continue the war, operate civil administrative agencies and keep public credit sound. To the extent that individuals buy these bonds, to that extent will the American economy benefit and to that extent will the consumer bankers themselves benefit. It is not often that the highest patriotic duty can be so easily identified with sound business practice." Consumer Credit, April 1945. 263 RESIDENTIAL BUILDING ACTIVITY AND SELECTED INFLUENCING FACTORS 1935-1939=100 BY YEARS BY MONTHS INDEX 1 11 11 1 220 PRIVATE 200 ( / \ 160 120 .**. V*SV<5S.6 LN. LEA D. HtU. HOM ELN. BK.A I00\ \ 80 f NDEX 220 K i i irvl * *..'*'x / \ •' " "v V* / 1 / /^SVGS. •** IV 8 LN. LEND. / / t *-/ .PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION t 1 I S 2 FAMILY DWELL. UNITS | ..«• >^ 40 20 1 FORECLOSURES 1 ( F F n wniwiP i M R K anM^ 1 1 1 1 120 *j\yS. ' 1 v ^ KRIt T 1 1v 1 RENTS ? — 80 i I —' + * - t ^ ^ - ^ _i i i i I 1 1 1 —\- " —£J 100 1 FORECLOSURES] 1 1 1 1 ! 1 1 1 ! 1 ! 1 1 1 Li..,i..-!---[--l--+-: — ^-BUILDING MATERIAL PRICES^ —7? DCklTC DEPT OF LABOR) 1 MTNONFARM I ! 0 140 — 1 MATl ~ P / / L Pmr.t - e 5 (U. 3. DEf T OF LAB( 3R) ILDI AW3 1 60 280 1 1 I1 J_L _!_]_. .!. 1 I.I .1 1. 1 1. 1 1 . 1 1 A D J U S T E D FOR S E A S O N A L 1 I 1 ^INDUSTRIAL 260 24o| INDLATRIAL PRODUC)TION-\ 220 i FED. f < t 3 t rcvt avnn 0) /" _.-»'* «•••"••" <- *i 11 VARIATION 1 1 PRODI JCTK)N *»*"N. *N^J* * m * t&ZZ. ..««...« v. ^V//V com: PAY MEN! j 200| s / j 180 i 1601 i J f *— /*•• N- ••-•«%, MFG. EhfPLO^(MEN TS i I40| / 120 V> I00\ r INCOME PAYMENTS ( U S . D E P T OF C O M M E R C E ) ^ * \ 80 60 i /r ./ V^ 60 i /y / .Al / \J 140 1 CONSTRUCTION^ 1 8 2 FAMILY DWELL. UNITS j (FED. LOAN BANK A D3M I X U.S. CHOME EPT DFLA B. RECORD 180 A D J U S T E D FOR S E A S O N A L V A R I A T I O N '\* & .••**** <&'' •••••/? 1/ •^ £\ EMPLOYMENT ^ ^"\ -MFG. (U.S. DEPT OF L A B O R ) : I.J. i i 1930 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 *4I '42 '43 '44 MILLIONS F.H.L.B. ADVANCES OUTSTANDING $200 * 1 1 THOUSNEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION URBAN AREAS - NO. OF DWELL. 1 1 I i i i i 1944 1943 UNITS \M^J WL •I..I..I. 264 • h,l..h H M I M I , 1 | 1 | 1 1 1 11945 l TITLES H AND 3ZI $2.5 | COM HERC/AL BKS.>, „.—-•"""" •»**""" PUBLIC 111ii11 r>~ I -htTTTTT.i.V •^rtA \aL . i i BILLIONS F.H.A. INSURED HOME MORTGAGES PRIVATE I and 2 FAMILY *ALL i - S-X INSURANCE CO. ••-"""' '- ^.-*--- [ SVGS a , .. I .N.ASSAJSx : ...I "| VMUT. SV6S BKS. 1 Federal Home Loan Bank Review < • • MONTHLY SURVEY > » - HIGHLIGHTS /. Industrial production in April dropped to 231 percent of the 1935-1939 average, a 5-point drop from the highest level attained during the first quarter of 1945. II. Building activity increased 55 percent during April and totaled 12,489 units. A. Public construction in war-production areas accounted for more than half of this gain. B. The cost of constructing the standard house increased fractionally while wholesale building material prices remained III. stationary New mortgage lending in April by all savings and loan associations totaled $154,000,000—the greatest volume for any month since the late twenties. A. Construction loans increased 29 percent but accounted for only 6 percent of total lending volume. B. Loans for home purchase, after an 8-percent advance from March, accounted for $74 out of each $100 of credit extended. IV. Recordings of nonfarm mortgages of $20,000 or less also reached a new peak in April—$455,790,000—after a 5-percent increase from March and a gain of 23 percent over April 1944. A. All types of mortgagees, except insurance companies, showed a greater volume of recordings during the first four months of this year than in the same 1944 period. B. The average mortgage recorded during January-April 1945 was $3,350, a gain of 6 percent over the same months of last year. V. The balance of FHLB advances outstanding on April 30, 1945 was $52,040,000—the lowest since June 1933. VI. The private capital balance of insured associations has increased 6 percent since the first of the year to a total of New loans of $113,300,000 were made during April. ik BUSINESS CONDITIONS—First effects of VE-Day apparent Reflecting the coming collapse of resistance in Europe, industrial production, which had been moving in high gear and showing virtually no change for a number of months, declined slightly in April. According to compilations by the Federal Reserve Board, it dropped to 231 percent of the 1935-1939 seasonally adjusted average in April from 236 percent, which had been the highest level attained in the first quarter of 1945. On an unadjusted basis, the April index was 229 percent of the 1935-1939 average as compared with 232 percent for March and 237 percent for the corresponding month of 1944. Manufacturing output was 4 points lower than in the preceding month, the unadjusted index figure being 245 percent. Minerals production was at 140 percent of the unadjusted base compared with 136 percent. However, as adjusted for seasonal variation, both manufacturing and extractive industries showed declines during the month. Department store sales declined sharply in April, standing for the month at 181 percent of the Federal Reserve Board's seasonally adjusted 1935-1939 average compared with 223 percent the preceding month—a drop of 42 points. With half of the job done and full weight coming to bear on the remaining half, WPB moved to chart June 1945 ft $4,600,000,000. ft the reconversion of industry to peacetime production as rapidly as military requirements would permit. Following VE-Day, announcement was made of the shape of things to come, but the timing and quantity of materials available for civilian consumption remained to be determined by military needs. On July 1 the Controlled Materials Plan will be "openended" to permit delivery without allotment of steel, copper and aluminum where such action can be taken without interference with authorized C M P orders. "The construction control order, L - 4 1 , will be retained, but will be progressively relaxed as resources become available." L-41 has been amended to increase the dollar exemption limits, and the standards for authorizing larger projects are being relaxed somewhat to permit approval of projects that contribute to large-scale future employment and to satisfy other highly essential needs. [1935-1939 = 100] Type of index Home construction (private) 1 . _ Rental index (BLS) Building material prices Savings and loan lending i Industrial production l_._ 1 Manufacturing employment ._ Income payments J 1 April 1945 48.9 108.3 130.8 208.5 231.0 158.1 242.1 Adjusted for normal seasonal variation. March 1945 48.6 108.3 130.8 217.2 ' 235. 0 r 161.0 r 244. 1 Percent change +0.6 0.0 0.0 -4.0 -1.7 -1.8 -0.8 r April 1944 45.5 108.1 128.6 166.3 239.0 172.3 231.1 Percent change +7.5 +0.2 +1.7 +25.4 —3.3 -8.2 +4.8 Revised. 265 B U I L D I N G A C T I V I T Y — R e l a t i v e l y large gain shown Relatively speaking, residential construction in urban areas increased substantially during April, the 12,489 dwelling units provided during the month representing increases of 55 percent from the preceding month and 30 percent from April 1944. Public construction, concentrated in critical war-production areas, particularly California, accounted for more than half of this rise, totaling 2,959 units during April compared with only 72 units in March. The 9,530 privately financed dwelling units for which permits were issued during April represented a gain of 20 percent in this type of construction from March and 12 percent from April 1944. During the first four months of this year, building permits were issued for an estimated 30,898 dwelling units, or approximately 26 percent less than the 42,019 units reported during the same period of last year. Private construction declined 17 percent in this comparison and public construction dropped 64 percent. [TABLES 1 and 2.] B U I L D I N G COSTS—Slow, steady advance continued During April, the index of the cost of constructing the standard house continued its steady upward course. The fractional increase in the total cost index from 134.8 to 134.9 is attributable to rises in both material and labor costs, indexes of which stood at 132.1 and 140.5, respectively (1935-1939=100). During the last 12 months, total costs have risen 2.0 percent, the result of a 1.9-percent gain in the cost of materials and an advance of 2.6 percent in labor charges. From March to April, the Department of Labor's index of wholesale building material prices showed no change, remaining at 130.8 percent of the 19351939 average. A decline of 0.1 percent during the month in the price of brick and tile products was offset by a corresponding increase in lumber prices; Construction costs for the standard house [Average month of 1935-1939=100] Element of cost Material Labor Total r Revised. 266 April 1944 Percent change + 0.1 + 0.2 129.7 137.0 + 1.9 + 2. 6 + 0.1 132. 2 + 2.0 April 1945 March Percent 1945 change 132. 1 140. 5 132.0 140.2 134.9 ' 134. 8 other components of the index showed no change. During the last year, the composite index advanced 1.7 percent, all materials with the exception of structural steel participating in the rise. [TABLES 3, 4 and 5.] MORTGAGE LENDING—New peak reached in A p r i l Paced by an increasingly great demand for credit to finance the purchase of existing homes, the volume of new mortgage loans made by all savings and loan associations reached another new high level in April. I t is estimated, on the basis of reports received from all insured associations and a sample of uninsured institutions, that savings and loans extended $154,000,000 of new mortgage credit during the month, 9 percent more than in March and 25 percent above the April 1944 amount. Available data indicate that the April 1945 volume of new mortgage loans was the greatest made by these institutions in any month since the boom days of the late twenties. New mortgage loans distributed by purpose [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] A pril 1945 Purpose PerPerApril March cent cent 1945 change 1944 change In 1945 the average mortgage recorded by all lenders, through April, was $3,350, approximately 23 percent over the annual average for 1939 and 6 percent above that for the corresponding period last year. [TABLES 8 and 9.] Mortgage recordings by type of mortgagee Construction, Home purchase Refinancing Reconditioning Other purposes Total $9, 541 113,684 16, 800 2,951 10, 778 $7, 406 105, 307 15, 922 2,559 10,287 + 28. 8 $13, 484 + 8. 0 85, 568 + 5.5 13,491 + 15.3 2,679 + 4 . 8 7,421 -29.2 + 32.9 + 24. 5 + 10. 2 + 45. 2 153, 754 141, 481 + 8.7 122, 643 + 25.4 All types of loans registered gains during April, the greatest percentage rise (29 percent) being shown in the construction category. I t should be pointed out, however, that home-construction loans accounted for only about 6 percent of total lending compared with approximately 30 percent in pre-war years. Loans for the purchase of existing homes, which accounted for $74 out of every $100 loaned during April, increased 8 percent from March. During the first four months of this year, new mortgage loans made by all savings and loan associations aggregated approximately $504,000,000, a gain of 20 percent over the $418,000,000 registered in the same months of 1944. [TABLES 6 and 7.] M O R T G A G E RECORDINGS—Hishest for any month yet reported Nonfarm mortgages of $20,000 or less recorded during April totaled $455,790,000, the highest amount reported for any month since this series was started in 1939. Standing 5 percent above March recordings and 23 percent higher than the volume in the corresponding month of last year, the April increase brought total recordings for the first four months of 1945 to $1,582,402,000—another high for the recording series. Activity during the period January through April was 17 percent higher than in the same months of 1944. This high level for recordings in the first four months of this year is the result of increases in the dollar volume reported for all types of mortgagees, with the exception of insurance companies which declined 9 percent. By type of lender, the most marked increase during the January-April period was shown by individuals, up 32 percent in dollar amount from the level of the first four months of 1944. Mutual savings banks had the next largest percent rise, 22 percent, followed by savings and loans, up 21 percent. June 1945 [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] Type of lender PerPerPerCumucent change cent lative re- ofcent total from of 1945 cordings March amount (4 months) recordings 1945 Savings and loan asso+ 3.8 ciations _ -4.6 Insurance companies Banks, trust companies- + 10.9 Mutual savings banks___ + 15.3 + 3.3 Individuals + 5.7 Others _ Total + 5.2 34.5 4.3 19.5 3.4 26. 1 12. 2 531, 74, 297, 52, 426, 200, 198 303 791 122 132 856 I 3.3 100.0 1, 582, 402 100. 0 33. 6 4.7 18.8 26. 9 12. 7 F H L B SYSTEM—Repayments up from March total Although April repayments in all Bank Districts reached almost four times the volume of advances made during that month, the dollar amount of repayments ($12,079,000) fell substantially below the March figure of $20,882,000. All Banks except Winston-Salem and Little Rock participated in this decline. The April repayments also lagged behind the $20,201,000 reported for the same 1944 month. Advances climbed in six Districts to raise the April total to $3,061,000, a gain of $291,000 over the $2,770,000 advance in March. However, not only were the April advances exceeded by the $3,468,000 advanced in April 1944, but they represented the smallest advances for this month since 1934. The balance of advances outstanding at the end of April was $52,040,000, a drop of $9,019,000 from $61,059,000 in March. This is the lowest balance outstanding since June 1933, and the lowest for any April since that same year. Topeka was the only Bank which showed an increased balance outstanding in April. [TABLE 12.] F L O W OF PRIVATE REPURCHASABLE CAPITAL Private savings invested in savings and loan associations during April approximated $162,300,000 and withdrawals amounted to $87,800,000. The resulting excess of new investments^over repurchases, 267 Share investments and repurchases, A p r i l 1945 [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] I t e m a n d period All associations All insured associations Uninsured members Nonmembers Share i n v e s t m e n t s : 1st 4 mos. 1944 Percent change _ __ April 1945 _ April 1944 _ Percent change $725, 898 $593, 206 $82, 591, 908 456, 314 80, + 30 + 23 162, 345 133, 651 18, 103, 713 19, 138, 661 + 29 + 17 844 $49, 848 406 55, 188 -10 +3 176 10, 518 376 15, 572 -32 -6 Repurchases: $418, 368 $324, 221 $56, 720 $37, 427 1st 4 mos. 1945 362, 841 269, 814 55, 039 37, 988 1st 4 mos. 1944 -1 + 20 +3 Percent change . + 15 April 1945 . ._ _ . 87, 788 65, 701 14, 785 7, 302 April 1944_ _ __ 71, 548 48, 392 12, 902 10, 254 -29 + 15 + 36 + 23 Percent change _ Repurchase ratio (percent) : 1st 4 mos. 1945 _ _ _ 1st 4 mos. 1944 April 1945 _ April 1944 57.6 61.3 54. 1 51.6 54.7 59. 1 49.2 46.7 68.5 68.5 81.3 66.6 75. 1 68.8 69. 4 65. 8 accounts are insured by the FSLIC had total resources of approximately $5,200,000,000 compared with $4,370,000,000 a year ago when insured associations totaled 2,453. New loans of $113,300,000 were made during April this year in comparision with $91,300,000 in the same month of 1944, a 24-percent rise in lending activity. Four state-chartered associations received insurance of accounts during the month, while there were no cancellations of insurance. [TABLE 13.] FEDERAL SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS Total resources of the 1,465 Federal savings and loan associations amounted to $3,281,000,000 at the close of April, a gain of 3.5 percent since the beginning of the year. Private capital has increased nearly 7 percent from $2,761,000,000 at the turn of the year to $2,942,000,000 at the end of April. Federals extended credit of approximately $71,400,000 for new loans during the month. Progress in number and assets of Federals [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] $74,500,000, compares with a net increase of $67,100,000 in private share capital in April 1944. The net increase for insured associations was $67,900,000; for uninsured members, $3,400,000; and for nonmember savings and loan associations, $3,200,000. During April 1944, net increases in the accounts of private investors in these institutions were, in the same order, $55,300,000, $6,500,000 and $5,300,000. For each $100 invested in savings and loan shares during April of this year, $54 was withdrawn. This compares with $52 in the same month of 1944. During the first four months of 1945, approximately $726,000,000 of private savings were invested in savings and loan associations, about 23 percent more than in the same months of last year. Withdrawals through April of this year amounted to $418,000,000, resulting in a net increase of $308,000,000 in the amount of private savings held by these institutions. During January-April 1944, share accounts of savings and loan associations were increased by approximately $229,000,000. INSURED ASSOCIATIONS—Private capital balance up Since the beginning of the year insured savings and loan associations have increased their private capital balance by 6 percent to a total of $4,600,000,000. At the close of April, the 2,469 institutions whose 268 Number Class of association Approximate assets April 30, March 31, 1945 1945 New _ Converted 632 833 Total 1,465 April 30, 1945 March 3 1 , 1945 632 $1, 113, 484 $1, 098, 328 833 2, 167, 022 2, 139, 614 1,465 3, 280, 506 3, 237, 942 FSLIC Bulletin No. 17 AMENDMENT TO RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR INSUR- A N C E OF ACCOUNTS RELATING TO PROVISIONS FOR FIDELITY BONDS COVERING DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES AND AGENTS OF INSURED SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS. (Adopted and effective M a y 16, 1945.) Paragraph (a) of Section 301.16 of the Kules and Regulations for Insurance of Accounts has been amended by rescinding the fifth sentence thereof. The deleted sentence reads as follows: "A true copy of such bond shall be filed with the Federal Home Loan Bank of which such insured institution is a member of, if such insured institution is not a member, then with the Federal home loan bank of the district in which such insured institution is located, as agent for the Corporation, and either the original of such bond or a true copy thereof shall be kept in the principal office of such institution." This minor and procedural amendment became effective on filing with The Federal Register. Federal Home Loan Bank Review Table 1 . — B U I L D I N G A C T I V I T Y — E s t i m a t e d number and valuation of new family-dwelling units provided in all urban areas in A p r i l 1945, by Federal Home Loan Bank District and by State [Source: TJ. S. Department of Labor] [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] All p r i v a t e 1- a n d 2-family s t r u c t u r e s All residential s t r u c t u r e s N u m b e r of familydwelling u n i t s Federal H o m e Loan B a n k District and State N u m b e r of familydwelling u n i t s Permit valuation Permit valuation A p r i l 1945 A p r i l 1944 A p r i l 1945 A p r i l 1944 A p r i l 1945 A p r i l 1944 April 1945 12,489 9, 592 $39, 802 $29,146 7,926 7,362 $28, 313 $23, 647 134 82 561 287 134 82 561 283 52 3 63 3 13 40 10 26 162 31 85 6 298 3 213 3 .44 162 31 82 9 52 3 63 3 13 40 10 26 6 298 3 213 3 44 273 79 1,068 320 124 75 594 310 111 162 26 53 437 631 88 232 51 73 22 53 211 383 78 232 N o . 3—Pittsburgh 98 162 317 435 68 148 247 416 Delaware Pennsylvania W e s t Virginia 1 58 39 152 10 4 164 149 432 3 1 28 39 138 10 4 94 149 413 3 1,839 1,249 5, 317 2,478 1,211 646 3, 719 1,237 98 656 355 171 34 77 28 420 86 141 233 617 5 58 14 95 89 1,749 1,148 557 94 221 40 1,419 69 374 308 1,229 11 99 23 365 98 119 344 159 34 77 28 352 86 69 209 117 5 55 14 91 89 428 1,119 540 94 221 40 1,188 69 201 236 234 11 98 23 365 598 960 2,691 3,523 536 960 2, 424 3,523 30 341 227 30 719 211 92 2,041 558 52 2,741 730 22 287 227 30 719 211 72 1,794 558 52 2,741 730 U N I T E D STATES ._ N o . 1—Boston. ___ ___ Connecticut Maine Massachusetts New Hampshire Rhode Island Vermont ___ __ ___ _. _ _ N o . 2—New Y o r k N e w Jersey N e w York _ _._ __ _ N o . 4—Winston-Salem.- _ . Alabama _ D i s t r i c t of C o l u m b i a Florida Georgia __ _ __ __. North Carolina. S o u t h Carolina Virginia ___ N o . 5—Cincinnati Kentucky OhioTennessee . _ .__ __. . N o . 6—Indianapolis Indiana Michigan. ._ ._ _ __ N o . 7—Chicago Illinois... Wisconsin N o . 8— D e s M o i n e s Iowa Minnesota* Missouri... _ _ North Dakota. . South D a k o t a N o . 9—Little R o c k Arkansas Louisiana.. Mississippi __ N e w M e x i c o . __ Texas __ _. __ _ _ _ _ N o . 10—Topeka Colorado Kansas Nebraska Oklahoma N o . 11—Portland Idaho Montana Oregon Utah Washington Wyoming __ . _ _ _. _ .. _ . _ __ .__ _ N o . 12—Los Angeles Arizona California. . ._ Nevada... _ June 1945 _ _. A p r i l 1944 8 483 974 2,264 3,804 479 771 2,256 3,401 281 202 442 532 1,201 1,063 1,320 2,484 277 202 253 518 1,193 1,063 967 2,434 643 736 3,170 3, 097 571 600 2, 858 2,854 588 55 709 27 2,894 276 2,977 120 516 55 573 27 2, 582 276 2,734 120 361 42 193 54 5 67 112 5 9 94 269 9 7 251 4 1,332 137 912 141 14 128 189 9 7 171 2 328 42 193 51 5 37 T4^ 4 1,530 137 912 216 14 251 1, 876 111 469 110 83 1,103 1, 553 28 148 37 29 1,311 3,724 205 746 138 169 2, 466 3,025 14 351 8 41 2, 611 1,570 61 253 106 83 1, 067 1,312 28 132 37 29 1,086 3.143 94 404 126 169 2,350 2,407 14 311 8 41 2,033 578 358 37 50 133 589 1, 752 1,149 76 189 338 1,845 481 261 37 50 133 189 1, 466 863 76 189 338 524 86 363 52 88 1,050 38 33 145 62 752 20 633 20 86 162 76 242 47 2,430 203 84 263 232 1,547 101 1,919 19 396 .443 259 801 1 4,556 181 4, 363 12 2,463 7,283 6,584 39 6,539 6 26 2,434 3 248 1,214 208 175 5 9 56 53 13 44 79 2.210 19 396 545 259 830 161 545 527 203 104 412 232 2,701 101 38 24 77 62 324 20 20 86 122 76 220 3 13, 655 660 12, 942 53 7, 853 39 7,808 6 1,879 139 1,718 12 1, 978 26 1,949 3 3.753 514 6,716 53 2 156 14 188 166 269 Table 2 . — B U I L D I N G A C T I V I T Y — E s t i m a t e d number and valuation of new family-dwelling units provided in all urban areas of the United States [Source: U. S. Department of Labor] [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] N u m b e r of family-dwelling u n i t s M o n t h l y totals T y p e of c o n s t r u c t i o n March 1945 April 1945 P r i v a t e construction_. _ 1-family dwellings 2-family dwellings *. . _ ._ _ 3- a n d more-family dwellings 2 P u b l i c construction ._ Total urban construction 1 2 Permit valuation J a n u a r y - A p r i l totals April 1944 1945 1944 M o n t h l y totals April 1945 March 1945 J a n u a r y - A p r i l totals April 1944 1945 1944 9,530 7,967 8,528 27,867 33, 632 $32,722 $26,165 $26,935 $84,146 $107,139 7,062 864 1,604 6,350 899 718 6,359 1,003 1,166 21,833 2,342 3,692 25,699 3,554 4,379 25,767 2,546 4,409 21, 541 2,496 2,128 20,143 3,504 3,288 66,839 7,576 9,731 81, 868 12,120 13,151 2,959 72 1,064 3,031 8,387 7,080 185 2,211 2,396 18,834 12,489 8,039 9,592 30,898 42,019 39, 802 26,350 29,146 86, 542 125,973 Includes 1- and 2-family dwellings combined with stores. Includes multi-family dwellings combined with stores. Table 3 . — B U I L D I N G COSTS—Index of building costs for the standard house in representative cities in specific months 1 [Average month of 1935-1939 = 100] 1945 1944 1943 1942 1941 1940 1939 May May May May May Federal H o m e Loan B a n k District and city, May No. 3—Pittsburgh: P h i l a d e l p h i a , Pa.*C h a r l e s t o n , W . Va.* N o . 5—Cincinnati: Louisville, Ky.*__. C l e v e l a n d , Ohio *___ Memphis, Tenn.* __. N o . 9—Little R o c k : L i t t l e R o c k , Ark.* _ N e w Orleans, La.* J a c k s o n .Miss.*_ _. H o u s t o n , Texas* _ ._ N o . 12—Los Angeles: Los Angeles, Calif.* Reno, Nev.* _ _ _ _ - Feb. Nov. Aug. May 151.9 134.1 151.4 134.2 151.1 134.2 149.7 133.3 150.0 132.3 146.2 121.3 136.3 147.5 136.9 135.2 147.9 136.0 134.7 147.8 135.6 134.3 142.6 135.3 133.7 142.6 134.4 121.2 128.9 120.1 139.0 141.9 139.0 126.8 138.4 141.9 137.2 126.4 138.5 141.7 137.2 126.8 138.1 141.2 137.2 126.7 137.6 141.2 136.8 123.6 155.5 133.0 155.0 133.0 151.3 132.9 148.9 133.0 148.2 127.5 137.6 119.1 117.5 110.1 107.4 r 101. 8 102.6 «• 101. 6 114.9 127.1 117.9 106.2 116.3 108.8 104.8 r 105. 4 103.6 101.0 101.9 102.5 134.7 131.4 123.5 116.2 128.5 128.9 122.7 116.1 112.7 121. 6 117.7 107. 0 r 104. 4 103.6 106.3 100.5 r 102. 1 101.2 103.3 100.7 132.9 120.6 120.3 117.5 102.7 109.2 95.3 105.5 96.0 102.1 . •Indexes of May 1941 and thereafter have been revised in order to use retail material prices collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Revised. This index is designed to measure the changes in the costs of constructing a standard frame house and to provide a basis for the study of the trend of costs within an individual community or in different cities. The various units of materials and labor are selected in accordance with their contribution to the total cost of the completed dwelling. Material costs are based on prices for a limited bill of the more important items. Current prices are furnished by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and are based on information from a group of dealers in each city who report on prices for material delivered to job site, in average quantities, for residential construction. Because of wartime conditions, some of the regular items are not available at times and, therefore, substitutions must be made of similar products which are being sold in the current market. Labor costs are based on prevailing rates for residential construction and reflect total earnings, including overtime and bonus pay. Either union or nonunion rates are used according to which prevails in the majority of cases within the community. Figures presented in this table include all revisions up to the present time. Revisions are unavoidable, however, as more complete information is obtained and becomes available for inclusion in this table. Cities in F H L B Districts 2, 6, 8, and 11 report in January, April, July and October of each year; those in Districts 3, 5, 9 and 12 report in February, May, August and November; and those in Districts 1, 4, 7 and 10 report in March, June, September and December. r 1 BUY WAR BONDS AND STAMPS 270 Fee/era/ Home Loan Bank Review Table 4 . — B U I L D I N G COSTS—Index of building costs for the standard house [Average month of 1935-1939=100] A p r . 1945 M a r . 1945 Feb.1945 J a n . 1945 D e c . 1944 N o v . 1944 E l e m e n t of cost Material Labor __ __ Total r Oct. 1944 Sept. 1944 A u g . 1944 J u l y 1944 J u n e 1944 M a y 1944 A p r . 1944 132.1 140.5 132.0 140.2 ••131.9 140.1 '131.7 ' 140.1 131.5 140.0 131.5 139.9 131.3 139.1 131.2 138.5 131.3 137.3 131.0 137.3 130.7 137.5 134.9 ' 134.8 134.6 134.5 134.4 134.4 133.9 133.7 133.3 133.1 133.0 130.3 137.3 129.7 137.0 132.7 132. 2 * Revised. Table 5 . — B U I L D I N G COSTS—Index of wholesale prices of building materials in the United States [1935-1939=100; converted from 1926 base] [Source: U. S. Department of Labor] All b u i l d i n g materials Period 1943: A p r i l 1944: A p r i l May June.. July August September.. October November D e c e m b e r __ ._. _ 1945: J a n u a r y . . . February March A p r i l _. -_ - Percent change: A p r i l 1945-Msrch 1945 A p r i l l 9 4 5 - A p r i l 1944 _. Brick and tile Paint and paint materials Lumber Cement Plumbing and heating Structural steel Other 123.2 108. 6 103.4 r 152. 3 126.0 118.8 103.5 109.9 128.6 129.2 129.4 129.4 129.5 129.5 129.9 130.0 130.0 110.4 110.6 110.7 110.8 110.8 111.7 115.3 115.6 115.9 103.1 105.8 105.8 105.8 105.8 106.3 107.0 107.2 107.0 170.8 171.5 171.5 171.7 171.9 171.5 171.3 171.3 171.3 128.4 128.7 130.0 129.7 129.7 129.7 130.3 130.7 130.7 120.6 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 111.2 111.4 111.4 111.5 111.6 111.7 111.7 111.7 111.7 130.4 130.6 130.8 130.8 121.5 121.6 121.8 121.7 106.9 108.7 109.1 109.1 171.3 171.4 171.3 171.4 130.7 130.8 130.7 130.7 121.4 121.4 121.4 121.4 103.5 103.5 103.5 103.5 111.9 112.0 112.3 112.3 0.0 +1.7 -0.1 +10.2 0.0 +5.8 +0.1 +0.4 0.0 +1.8 0.0 +0.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 +1.0 , * Revised. Table 6 . — M O R T G A G E LENDING—Estimated volume of new home-mortgage loans by all savings and loan associations/ by purpose and class of association [Thousands of dollars] P u r p o s e of loans Class of association Period 1943 January-April _ April--- -__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ -__ 1944 January-April _ .__ .__ ___ April May June July____ August September October November December. 1945 January-AprilJanuary February March April __ ... __ _ _ -_ __. ___ June 1945 _ _._ Reconditioning L o a n s for all o t h e r purposes Total loans Construction Home purchase Refinancing $106,497 $802,371 $167,254 $30,441 $77,398 $1,183,961 $511, 757 $539,299 $132,905 30,192 192, 227 53,832 8,481 22, 368 307,100 130, 523 138,141 38,436 9,853 65,088 15, 040 2,484 6,270 98, 735 42, 717 44,461 11, 557 95,243 1,064,017 163,813 30, 751 100,228 1,454,052 669,433 648,670 135, 949 41, 678 288, 552 49,844 8,426 29,415 417,915 192,148 184,493 41 274 13,484 7,338 9,663 7,078 7,589 5,923 6,095 4,635 5,244 85, 568 98,872 103, 276 93,232 105,050 101,884 101,461 90,182 81,508 13,491 14,415 14, 963 13,871 14,152 14,495 15,253 13, 265 13,555 2,679 2,967 2,957 2,841 3,067 3,160 2,699 2,507 2,127 7,421 8,931 9,850 8,014 8,816 8,993 9,720 • 7,785 8,704 122,643 132,523 140,709 125,036 138, 674 134,455 135,228 118, 374 111,138 57,045 59,229 64,474 57,164 64,400 63,489 61,965 54,978 51, 586 54, 212 60,141 63,851 56, 539 61,377 59,162 60,945 52,241 49,921 11,386 13 153 12,384 11,333 12,897 11,804 12,318 11,155 9,631 23, 800 373, 626 57,413 9,372 39,334 503, 545 237,144 221,670 44, 731 3,772 3,081 7,406 9,541 76,495 78,140 105, 307 113,684 12,167 12,524 15,922 16,800 1,868 1,994 2,559 2,951 7,999 10,270 10, 287 10,778 102, 301 106,009 141,481 153, 754 46,439 49,900 69,430 71, 375 46,452 46,575 60,688 67,955 9,410 9,534 11,363 14,424 Federals State members Nonmembers 271 Table 7.—LENDING—Estimated volume of new loans by savings and loan associations Table 8.—RECORDINGS—Estimated nonfarir mortgage recordings, $20,000 and under [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] A P R I L 1945 [Thousands of dollarsl C u m u l a t i v e n e w loans (4 m o n t h s ) N e w loans Federal Home Loan B a n k District a n d class of association April 1945 March 1945 April 1944 1945 1944 Percent change Savings Insur- Banks M u Federal H o m e Loan and and tual ance Bank District loan trust savassocia- comand State comings panies tions panies b a n k s .__ $153,754 $141,481 $122,643 $503, 545 $417,915 +20.5 Boston Federal State member Nonmember Boston 71, 375 67,955 14,424 ._ ___ . Federal State member Nonmember _ . New York Federal State member Nonmember _ Pittsburgh Federal-. State member Nonmember _ Winston-Salem Federal _ __ State member Nonmember._ 69,430 60, 688 11,363 57, 045 237,144 192,' 148 54,212 221, 670 184,493 11,386 44, 731 41, 274 +23. 4 +20.2 +8.4 11,384 7,541 8,056 31,652 26, 441 +19.7 4,118 5,791 1, 475 3,742 3,059 740 2,817 4,381 858 12,806 15,282 3,564 9,050 13,619 3,772 +41. 5 +12.2 — 5.5 15, 062 12, 741 9,316 46,131 31, 526 +46.3 5,491 6,913 2,658 4,385 6,241 2,115 2,942 4,721 1,653 16,071 22,151 7,909 8,583 17,177 5,766 +87.2 +29.0 +37.2 13,674 11,198 11, 294 41, 784 35, 756 +16.9 6,271 4,757 2,646 5,395 3,661 2,142 5,458 3,571 2,265 19,469 14, 639 7,676 16, 338 11, 539 7,879 +19.2 +26.9 —2.6 18, 721 17,097 14, 416 63, 359 52, 075 +21.7 9,800 7,840 1,081 9,577 6, 656 864 7,801 5,675 940 34, 017 25, 840 3,502 28,383 20, 668 3,024 +19.8 +25.0 +15.8 27,011 24,140 20, 463 82, 800 68,913 +20.2 Federal State member Nonmember 11, 576 13, 419 2,016 11, 273 11,465 1,402 8,151 10,635 1,677 35,866 41,176 5,758 27, 733 34,932 6,248 +29.3 +17.9 —7.8 Indianapolis 8,530 7,517 6,259 28, 641 22, 975 +24.7 4,553 3,478 499 3,961 3,323 233 2,880 3,192 187 14,861 12, 290 1,490 11,050 10, 862 1,063 +34. 5 +13.1 +40.2 11,379 413 3,594 7,948 6,424 2,758 32,51 297 18 98 _ 1,486 672 7,465 368 1,142 246 1,597 255 1,130 164 369 79 1,304 783 4,463 654 382 362 1,975 561 2,776 353 503 256 890 63 1,312 47 418 28 7,54 2,35 17,24 1,5& 2,81 97 12; 236 1,612 6,651 5,649 15,871 5,287 47,30 3,551 8,685 617 995 3,255 3,396 708 4,941 4,071 11,800 2,062 3,225 14,26 33,04 11,924 1,908 7,696 478 7,017 2,774 31,79 238 10,761 925 135 1,440 333 163 6,232 1,281 32 446 280 6,050 687 54 2,577 143 92 27,50 3,36 16,132 2,949 6,241 148 18,344 5,339 49,15 538 2,361 2,048 1,912 4,269 2,416 455 2,133 224 410 732 224 128 546 206 479 505 833 843 1,154 818 461 433 1,194 148 971 3.S77 6,046 1,532 2,032 1,395 784 2,307 453 961 1,104 768 292 630 375 756 2,69 7,84 10,77 5,59 7,68 5,44 2,25 6,86 32,410 1,912 11, 277 458 6,356 4,400 56,81 4,97 46,16 5,66 Connecticut Maine Massachusetts New Hampshire Rhode Island Vermont New York N e w Jersey New York - Pittsburgh Delaware Pennsylvania W e s t Virginia . Winston-Salem Alabama.. D i s t r i c t of C o l u m b i a . Florida. Georgia Maryland. _ N o r t h Carolina S o u t h Carolina Virginia Federal State member Nonmember . . . . __ Chicago Federal State member Nonmember Des Moines . F e d e r a l __ State member Nonmember _ __ _ Little Rock Federal ... State member Nonmember _. . Topeka.. Federal State member Nonmember __. Portland. Federal State member Nonmember Los Angeles Federal State member Nonmember. 272 _ ._ 18, 555 17,176 14, 215 57, 492 46, 098 +24 7 7,949 8,984 1,622 7,437 8,635 1,104 6,083 6,854 1,278 24, 232 28, 411 4,849 19,141 22, 673 4,284 +26 6 +25.3 +13.2 8,835 8,915 7,890 29, 959 24, 370 +22.9 4, 661 3,239 935 4,561 3,139 1, 215 3,946 2,877 1,067 14, 833 11,032 4,094 +26.7 11, 707 9,202 * + 1 9 . 9 3,461 +18 3 6, 267 7,448 7,712 25,908 25, 727 +0.7 3,193 2, 994 80 3,647 3,717 84 2,681 4,979 52 12,906 12, 672 330 9,847 15, 587 293 +31.1 -18.7 +12.6 7,165 7,645 5,552 27, 234 20, 423 +33.3 3, 790 2,187 1,188 4,087 2,314 1,244 2,993 1,423 1,136 14,493 8,123 4,618 10,277 5,559 4,587 +41.0 +46.1 +0.7 5,054 4,923 3,575 17,956 12,939 +38.8 3,077 1,857 120 3,242 1,526 155 2,580 839 156 11, 407 5,954 595 8,976 3,431 532 +27.1 +73.5 +11.8 13, 496 15,140 13, 895 50, 629 50, 672 -0.1 6,896 6,496 104 8,123 6,952 65 8,713 5,065 117 26,183 24,100 346 31, 063 19, 244 365 -15.7 +25. 2 -5.2 Kentucky.. Ohio Tennessee. Indianapolis Indiana. Michigan __ ._ _ Chicago 437 5,407 512 9,201 2,088 8,316 63 3,574 1,930 25,17 5,910 3,291 656 1,432 2, 983 5,333 63 1,327 2,247 784 1,146 11,72 13,44 6,471 19 7,621 9,336 44,19 4,308 2,163 19 4,496 3,125 8,709 627 33,93 10,25 9,874 1,870 7,029 327 5,984 4,933 30,01 2,671 3,498 3,194 316 195 256 420 1,134 44 16 1,734 1,550 3,455 123 167 942 1,505 3,253 152 132 499 1,248 3,114 49 23 6,10 8,54 14,15 68 53 8,473 2,285 2,816 8,427 2,819 24,82 601 2,215 382 177 5,098 106 264 111 1,804 461 152 324 155 1,724 537 1,592 506 421 5,371 32 332 163 15 2,277 1,73 4,55 1,48 76 16,27 ____ _ 8,138 841 2,349 5,478 2,657 19,46 _ 1,492 2,443 1,236 2,967 89 89 310 353 543 746 318 742 2,572 648 486 1,772 1,687 257 101 612 6,38 4,18 2,45 6,44 4,889 499 3,9S9 590 3,864 2,381 16,21 350 304 1,424 499 2,125 187 58 10 201 122 108 233 156 302 638 2,538 122 77 431 327 1,452 330 1,097 227 95 9 234 193 1,846 4 1,16 8C 3,69 1,78 8,22 54 29,753 11,135 78,32 90 1,398 28,014 11,023 22 341 2,4( 75,35 5< _ _. Colorado Kansas . Nebraska.._ Oklahoma Portland Arizona California. _. Nevada 458 772 277 Arkansas _ Louisiana Mississippi N e w Mexico Texas Los Angeles 1,040 9,157 1,080 1,049 Little Rock Idaho Montana Oregon Utah.. Washington Wyoming 293 1,125 494 161 1,474 2,765 19,695 Iowa Minnesota Missouri North Dakota South Dakota Topeka.. 3,048 28, 546 816 15, 651 4,044 Illinois Wisconsin, _ Des Moines Total __. Cincinnati Cincinnati Other mortgagees $157,181 $19,718 $88,749 $15,680 $118,713 $55,749 $455,79 UNITED STATES U N I T E D STATES Individuals _ 12,830 2,292 22,320 302 12,448 80 559 58 2,220 21, 624 137 14 327 513 _ ....... Fee/era/ Home Loan Bank Revizv Table 9 - — M O R T G A G E RECORDINGS—Estimated volume of nonfarm mortgages recorded [Dollar a m o u n t s are s h o w n in thousands] Savings a n d loan associations Insurance companies M u t u a l savings banks Banks and trust companies Individuals O t h e r mortgagees All mortgagees Period Total 1944 anuary-April LpriL /[ay. une uly august eptember )ctober November )ecember __ Percent Percent Total Total Percent Total Percent Total Total Percent Percent Total Percent $1,563,678 33.9 5.6 $877, 762 19.0 $165,054 3.6 $1,134,054 24.6 $613,908 13.3 $4,610,629 100.0 440,231 127,429 139, 748 145,893 138, 762 149,835 146,151 148,131 134, 359 120, 568 32.6 34.5 34.5 34.6 33.7 34.8 35.1 35.0 34.1 33.5 81,669 19,671 21,794 22. 215 24,707 22, 646 22,432 20,985 20, 543 19,182. 6.0 5.3 5.4 5.3 6.0 5.2 5.4 5.0 5.2 5.3 265,534 72, 438 79,083 79,453 80,858 83, 094 77, 000 76,181 71, 752 64, 807 19.7 19.6 19.5 18.8 19.7 19.3 18.5 18.0 18.2 18.0 42,618 12, 338 14,882 • 15,536 15, 261 15,920 15,447 16, 552 15,176 13, 662 3.2 3.4 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.9 3.9 3.8 332, 448 89,466 95, 730 99,140 98,194 104, 215 104,479 109,767 103,513 95, 568 24.0 24.2 23.6 23.5 23.9 24.2 25.1 26.0 26.3 26.5 195,601 47,926 53,858 59, 394 53,354 55, 066 50, 676 51, 223 48, 296 46,440 14.5 13.0 13.3 14.1 13.0 12.8 12.2 12.1 12.3 12.9 1,349,101 369, 268 405, 095 421, 631 411,136 430,776 416,185 422,839 393,639 360, 227 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100. 0 100.0 100 0 100.0 100.0 100.0 513,198 111, 480 111, 176 151, 361 157,181 33.6 31.4 32.8 34.9 34.5 74,303 17, 882 16,034 20, 669 19,718 4.7 5.0 4.7 4.8 4.3 297, 791 65,109 63,933 80, 000 88, 749 18.8 18.4 18.9 18.5 19.5 52,122 12, 500 10, 343 13, 599 15,680 3.3 3.5 3.1 3.1 3.4 426,132 99,200 93, 248 114,971 118,713 26.9 28.0 27.5 26.5 26.1 200,856 48,407 43,963 52, 737 55,749 12.7 13.7 13.0 12.2 12.2 1, 582,402 354, 578 338, 697 433,337 455,790 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 _. _ _- $256,173 1945 anuary-April anuary 'ebruary.larch._ _ L pril Table 1 0 — S A V I N G S — S a l e s of war bonds 1 Table 11.- - F H A — H o m e mortgages insured [ T h o u s a n d s of dollars] Period Series F Series E 1944 .pril ._ l a y _._ u n e _u l y _ __ _ ugust_ - _ eptember •ctober Tovember )ecember 1945 inuary ebruary [arch pril__. [ P r e m i u m p a y i n g ; t h o u s a n d s of dollars] Redemptions Total Series G ,$2,891,427 $16,044,085 Title II Title V I (603) Period New $12,379,891 $772,767 605, 709 624,253 1, 349, 794 1,686, 509 499,357 590,827 598, 570 806, 817 1,855,300 19,306 15,287 115,119 101,082 17, 807 15, 953 13,653 42, 680 124,669 113, 528 111, 088 377, 284 337,459 85, 272 85,286 82, 871 173, 858 405,880 738, 543 750,628 1, 842,197 2,125,050 602,436 692, 066 695,094 1,023,355 2, 385,849 230,614 271, 597 241,278 220,145 272,125 277,445 394, 846 376,053 358, 572 1944: A p r i l May June July August September O c t o b e r . __ November. December . 803*, 819 653, 222 712,133 684,424 42,034 30,695 26, 487 23,112 228,327 164,073 150, 456 130,100 1,074,180 847,990 889,076 837, 636 333,443 317,083 437,892 381,198 1945: J a n u a r y . . . February.. March April i U . S. T r e a s u r y W a r Savings Staff. he U . S. T r e a s u r y . l $13, 263,168 A c t u a l deposits m a d e to t h e credit of $130 81 81 82 90 79 40 54 31 Existing Total insured a t e n d of period $13,200 18,319 17,768 18,322 20, 256 19, 967 21, 941 21,646 18, 269 $36, 793 37, 739 34, 238 42,322 48,166 42, 592 43, 354 38,053 36,573 $5, 544, 497 5,600,636 5, 652, 723 5, 713,449 5,781,961 5,844, 599 5, 909,934 5,969, 687 6,024, 560 19, 006 14,085 16,480 14,813 38, 640 31, 417 29,886 26,885 6, 082,273 6,127, 802 6,174,205 6,215,966 1 Figures represent gross insurance w ritten d u r i n g t h e period a n d do n o t t a k e a c c o u n t of principal r e p a y m e n t s on previously insured loans. Table 1 2 . — F H L B A N K S — L e n d i n g operations and principal assets and liabilities [ T h o u s a n d s of dollars] L e n d i n g operations, A p r i l 1945 P r i n c i p a l assets, A p r i l 30, 1945 C a p i t a l a n d p r i n c i p a l liabilities, A p r i l 30, 1945 Federal Home Loan Bank Advances Repayments $650 1,061 1,102 1,364 595 1,089 2,402 621 644 86 402 2,063 Advances outstanding $20, 273 27, 993 16,976 18,052 26, 896 14, 878 23, 344 13, 331 12, 596 10, 909 8,639 16, 408 $2,000 5,000 5,500 0 2,500 5,000 6,000 8,500 2,000 1,000 2,000 10, 500 $1, 565 23, 214 3,592 926 20,106 7,649 6,114 3,753 225 568 1,462 6,291 $23,880 56, 245 26,097 18, 980 49, 534 27, 551 35, 486 25, 609 14,828 12,479 12,107 33, 240 12, 079 52, 040 18, 543 264,198 210, 295 50,000 75,465 336,036 20,882 61,059 233, 377 209, 547 50, 000 ,742 320,469 185,218 202,493 64, 300 26,336 295,948 3,061 arch 1945 2,770 20, 201 82, 645 une 1945 Member deposits $16, 039 51, 506 15, 729 14, 605 44, 913 21, 447 23, 444 22, 985 10, 219 8,191 11,412 23, 708 pril 1945 ( c o m b i n e d total) i I n c l u d e s i n t e r b a n k deposits. Debentures $1, 345 1,156 3,830 1,079 1,826 1,255 2,395 896 1,345 1,345 526 1,545 $247 40 516 210 40 40 1,417 pril 1944 Capital2 $6, 419 3, 426 6,442 3,241 2,564 4,709 9,501 1,655 3,197 2,902 105 7,879 Dston ew Y o r k ittsburgh inston-Salem incinnati dianapolis tiicago es M o i n e s ttle Rock Dpeka )rtland >s Angeles 113 130 200 Government securities Total A p r . 30, 1945 27,174 2 C a p i t a l stock, s u r p l u s , a n d u n d i v i d e d profits. 273 Table 13—INSURED A S S O C I A T I O N S Progress of institutions insured by the FSLIC l [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] Operations Number of associations Total assets New New 1 private m o r t g a g e I investloans ments Private repurchases 1944: A p r i l May June July August-. September October November December 2,453 2,459 2,461 2,463 2,461 2,460 2,462 2,462 2,466 $4,374, 338 4, 442, 608 4, 583, 568 4, 619, 867 4,667,060 4, 713, 815 4, 774,160 4,867,068 5,012,662 $91,344 $103,713 97,454 109, 049 105, 245 127,945 93, 305 155, 218 104,008 126, 641 101,658 122,016 100, 642 129, 938 88, 227 115,008 83,408 142, 291 $48, 392 44,403 46, 560 120,349 64,619 56,102 54, 719 52, 378 45, 985 46.7 40.7 36.4 77.5 51.0 46.0 42.1 45.5 32.3 1945: J a n u a r y February March. April 2,466 2,463 2,465 2,469 5,035,626 5, 076, 554 5,136,903 5, 204,641 195,077 123, 943 125, 769 , 63,089 138, 709 71, 488 133, 651 65, 701 63.5 50.2 51.5 49.2 1,466 1,466 1,465 1,466 1,465 1,464 1,465 1,464 1,464 2, 737,017 2, 775, 665 2,881, 276 2, 907, 974 2,934,647 2, 961,860 3,000, 365 3,059, 556 3,168, 731 68,549 72,413 83,856 101,500 82,105 79,126 85,297 75,372 93,400 44.2 38.2 31.0 78.6 49.7 45.0 39.6 43.3 27.9 P e r i o d a n d class of association ALL 1 Repurchase ratio INSUEED 76, 79, 110, 113, 215 479 287 296 FEDERAL 1944: A p r i l May June July August September October November December 1945: J a n u a r y . . February March. April _. STATE 1944: A p r i l May. June July August September October.. November December 1945: J a n u a r y • February March April 1 __ .. __ 57, 045 59, 229 64,474 57,164 64, 400 63, 489 61, 965 54, 978 51, 586 30, 279 27, 676 25, 969 79, 735 40,825 35, 570 33, 746 32, 665 26,049 88,356 1 84, 624 41, 374 46, 574 41, 856 65.3 49.9 50.8 47.4 34,299 38,225 33,280 36,141 39,608 38,169 38,677 33,249 31,822 35,164 36,636 36,218 53,718 44,536 42,890 44,641 39,636 48,891 | 18,113 16,727 20,511 40,614 23,794 20, 532 20,973 19,713 19,936 51.5 45.7 56.6 75.6 53.4 47.9 47.0 49.7 40.8 29,776 29,579 40,857 41,921 65,437 1 42,907 47,082 45,295 39,319 21,715 24,914 23,845 60.1 50.6 52.9 52.6 1,464 1,464 1,465 1,465 3,178,132 3, 200, 324 3, 237, 942 3,280, 506 46, 49, 69, 71, 987 993 996 997 996 996 997 998 1,002 1, 637,321 1, 666, 943 1, 617, 971 1, 711,893 1, 732,413 1, 752, 015 1, 773, 795 1, 807, 512 1, 843,931 1,002 999 1,000 1,004 1, 857, 494 1, 876, 230 1, 898, 961 1, 924,135 439 900 430 375 129,640 82,862 91,627 Balance-sheet items, formerly shown each month, now appear only in the February, May, August, and November issues of the REVIEW. Tables 14 and 15 now appear quarterly in the February, May, August and November issues. uneconomic scattering of city dwellers? Can th( modern city provide central parking for all those whc desire to drive to work in the central area? When a balanced plan has been agreed upon by local authorities, the progressive steps to be taker should be decided upon so that each project assumes its place in the long-term development of the area, Investments in real property of all kinds—homes stores, apartment houses—are at the mercy of tht traffic stream. Properly channeled and controlled, this stream will stabilize and enhance property values. Uncontrolled, it can undermine the value of individual homes and neighborhoods of a city, Broadly conceived plans and action are needed to conserve values and achieve supportable communities fe DIRECTORY W CHANGES A P R I L 1 6 — M A Y 15, 1945 Key to Changes * Admission to Membership in Bank System ** Termination of Membership in Bank System # Federal Charter Granted ## Federal Charter Canceled 0 Insurance Certificate Granted 00 Insurance Certificate Canceled DISTRICT N O . 3 PENNSYLVANIA: Greensburg: 0Greensburg Building and Loan Association, 11 East Otterman Street. Philadelphia: #Aetna Federal Savings and Loan Association, 1520 South Broad Street. **Penn Mutual Building and Loan Association of Germantown, 572 Germantown Avenue. Pittsburgh: 0East Park Savings and Loan Association, 118 East Ohio Street, N . S. **Harmony Building and Loan Association #2, Sixth Ward, 1509 Fiftl Avenue. DISTRICT N O . 5 OHIO: Cincinnati: * Glen way Loan and Deposit Company, Glen way and Winfield Avenues DISTRICT N O . 6 INDIANA: Traffic and Real Estate (Continued from p. 261) It is to be takeo as an axiom that in planning for traffic, the urban locality's needs must be considered as a whole, and consideration given to the views of those concerned with enhancing residential, business and industrial values. The effects and limitations of particular projects must be understood before work is begun. For example, will an express highway project, undertaken before the transit system is improved, tend toward 274 Terre Haute: **Twelve Points Savings and Loan Association, 1279 Maple Avenue. DISTRICT N O . 9 TEXAS: Wharton: **Wharton Building and Loan Association, Monteray Square. NATIONAL HOUSING AGENCY John B. Blandford, Jr., Administrator FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK ADMINISTRATION] John H. Fahey, Commissioner Fee/era/ Home Loan Bank RevieY Table 1 7 . - G O V E R N M E N T Table 1 6 . — K O L C — M o r t g a g e loans outstanding and properties on hand fDollar amounts are shown in thousands] [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] D u e on original loans Period D u e on property sold T y p e of operation Book v a l u e Number * Federals $1. 764.672 $254, 266 $421, 510 68, 535 1, 558, 930 340, 611 316,266 47, 588 1942: April 1, 347, 703 360, 762 265,159 37,176 1943: April 1,123,056 358, 966 207, 571 27,864 885, 304 856,889 847,180 828, 977 810, 320 792, 620 774,179 757, 028 741, 656 375, 093 373, 732 373, 732 370,059 366, 561 362, 874 358, 541 354,117 349, 707 55,456 45, 576 34,890 28, 771 23, 318 19, 009 15, 641 12,660 10, 701 7,735 6, 413 5,042 4,245 3,478 2,863 2,362 1,941 1,659 724, 306 709, 620 693,190 678,134 344, 339, 334, 328, 9,157 8,278 7,342 6,439 1,446 1,337 1,207 1,071 1944: A p r i l May June July .__ _-_ . . September November December 1945: J a n u a r y February March.. April [ - H o m e O w n e r s ' L o a n Corporation Treasury Properties owned 1941: A p r i l 1940: A p r i l SHARES—In- vestments in member associations 1 311 642 092 846 October 1935-March 1945: Applications: Number . - _-. Amount . Investments: Number . Amount . Repurchases . . . . .N e t o u t s t a n d i n g investments __ . 2 State members Federals Total 1,862 $50, 401 4,710 $213,701 995 $66,495 5,705 $280,196 1,831 $49, 300 $46,645 4,243 $178, 416 $158,320 738 $45,441 $39,230 4,981 $223, 857 $197, 550 $2, 655 $20, 096 $6, 211 $26,307 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 $834 0 0 $6,354 0 0 $1,890 0 0 $8,244 First q u a r t e r 1945: Applications: Number. Amount. Investments: Number. Amount Repurchases..- .-_ i Refers to number of separate investments, not to number of associations in which investments are made. 2 Investments in Federals by the Treasury were made between December 1933 and November 1935. Includes re-acquisitions of properties previously sold. Table 18.—FHLBS—Membership in the Federal Home Loan Bank System [Dollar amounts are shown in thousands] 1944 1945 T y p e of i n s t i t u t i o n All m e m b e r s March __ Savings a n d loan associations Federal _ Insured state Uninsured state M u t u a l savings b a n k s _ --_ - 1943 March December March No. Assets No. Assets No. Assets 3,696 $7,392,554 3,699 $7, 265, 763 3,731 $6, 531,180 3,781 $5,820,090 3,657 6,541,038 3,659 6,415,119 3,688 | 5,690,372 3,736 5,055,500 1,465 996 1,196 3, 237,942 1,892,876 1,410, 220 1,464 998 1,197 3,168, 731 1,837, 873 1,408, 515 1,466 1 2,709,897 982 1.612.275 1,368, 200 1,240 1,467 944 1,325 2,300,638 1,384,663 1,370,199 24 510, 230 22 480, 221 22 451, 429 22 415,199 15 341,286 18 370,423 21 389, 379 23 349,391 No. Assets Table 1 9 . — W A R HOUSING—Progress of war-housing construction program T o t a l n u m b e r of a c c o m m o d a t i o n s allocated to localities N u m b e r of a c c o m m o d a t i o n s u n d e r construction N u m b e r of a c c o m m o d a t i o n s completed T y p e of construction As of M a r . 31, 1945 P r i v a t e l y financed: i N e w construction C o n v e r s i o n . _ ._ _ As of D e c . 31, 1944 As of Sept. 30, 1944 As of M a r . 31, 1945 As of D e c . 31, 1944 As of Sept. 30, 1944 As of M a r . 31, 1945 As of D e c . 31, 1944 As of Sept. 30, 1944 - . - 851,434 203,466 841,000 204,632 835, 363 209,182 26, 591 2,234 39, 544 3,324 56, 610 4,017 789,524 196, 506 767, 717 194,763 737, 590 192,123 _ __ _ __ 550,110 48, 308 171, 654 82,540 539,491 48,341 168, 749 80, 205 535,333 48,442 166,142 76,186 15,520 384 2,454 2,989 19, 746 2,549 1,288 3,360 22, 240 5,676 2,550 6,222 522, 550 49,126 167,375 77,581 515,886 47,195 165,567 74, 797 504, 731 44,027 162, 726 68, 582 2 Publicly financed: Family units: N e w c o n s t r u c t i o n 3 ._ Conversion ( H O L C ) 4 - _ . Single-person u n i t s . _ Stop-gap a c c o m m o d a t i o n s . _ ._ i Represents privately financed war housing built under P-55, plus an estimated 302,000 new units and 175,000 converted units built without P-55 orders. 2 Data for September and December 1944 revised as of March 31, 1945. Excludes suspended, canceled and limited projects but includes units started in projects which have been removed to other localities, sold, converted to nonresidential use or placed in standby status. As of March 1945 such units numbered 79,299 (18,840 family units, 21,294 single-person units and 39,165 stop-gap accommodations); as of December 31, 1944 there were 74,909 units (18,128 family units, 18,467 single-person units, and 38,314stop-gap accommodations); as of September 30,1944 there were 64,905 units (18,235 family units, 12,445 single-person units and 34,225 stop-gap accom* modations). 3 Includes a small number of units in converted projects built by FPHA and other Federal agencies. 4 The number of units assigned represents only the number of additional accommodations to be provided through the conversion program, whereas the number started and completed also include existing units which were taken over intact in structures in which conversion work was done. June 1945 275 fflW in U. S. Court upholds warhousing policy In the first case of its kind, court action prevented the eviction of a war worker and his family from housing built under the war-priorities system. The action, announced the middle of May, resulted from a nationwide policy set up jointly by WPB, NHA and OPA. In May 1943, a Cleveland, Ohio, builder applied to FHA for priorities under the WPB program. Under NHA General Order 60-3 the builder certified that he would not rent, nor allow the building to be sublet, to anyone other than eligible war workers. The order further stipulated that such a "priority dwelling" should be sold only to someone who likewise would rent solely to eligible workers. After completing the two-unit house, the builder rented part of it to a war worker and his family then, a year later, he sold the house. The new owners who wanted the unit for their own use, immediately began eviction proceedings against the war worker. After WPB and NHA regional representatives determined that apparently the regulations under which the house was built were being violated, they referred the case to the U. S. District Attorney. The U. S. District Court held hearings and granted a permanent injunction against the eviction of the war worker. Federal court action thus upheld the stand of WPB, NHA and OPA that war-housing units constructed with WPB help must continue to be held for use of war workers during the emergency, unless specific permission to do otherwise is. granted by the Government. Post-VE-Day survey of manpower If the War Production Board can make available materials in sufficient quantity for reconverted plants to start producing civilian goods, total unemployment within the next year ONE HiN feet less than it had been in January 1941, the War Production Board estimates that 1945 consumption will amount to 31,000,000,000 board feet, only 6,000,000,000 less than during the last full civilian-production year. This 1945 estimate allows for taking only 1,000,000,000 feet from stocks essential to cover the lag in curing. J. A. Krug, WPB Chairman, stated recently, "Production must be maintained for the Pacific war, and at the same time civilian production must be expanded to the extent that manpower, materials and facilities are released from war production." PostVE-Day reconversion will depend in large measure on lumber supplies that can be made available. Already 13 percent more lumber is being alloted for civilian construction during the third quarter than was scheduled for the preceding three months. To alleviate the current tight situation, Mr. Krug assured the industry of all possible aids to production. This will include channeling of supplies and equipment, particularly trucks and tires, and increasing the availability of manpower, long a bottleneck in lumber production. should not amount to more than 2.1 million at any one time. This is the conclusion of a Government pcst-VEDay estimate made of the manpower potential of the country, based on the assumption that the war with Japan will continue for at least another year. This projection by the War Manpower Commission is the result of their estimate that, in spite of an announced 25-percent cut in draft calls commencing July Improbably 50,000 young men per month will be lost by industry. The expectation is that manpower needs for direct war work will decline 2.8 million within three months and 4.7 million by the end of six months. Although all of these figures are tentative, they form the groundwork for the present reconversion policy as it affects the labor supply. All-important lumber supply dwindling That the lumber situation constitutes a real problem is apparent from the accompanying chart. With production in the first quarter of 1945 at the lowest point since Pearl Harbor and the stock on hand at the beginning of the year 11,000,000,000 board PRODUCTION AND BILLIONS 10 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 20 flfl USE OF OF BOARD LUMBER FEET 30 40 FBT1 F 1ffiT*lBH H i H i H i BFi Bff m\ mM HH H i H i Brn BFIBFI £ 3 6S3<53 (S3 <£2 <§3 <§ BPI JSH J H JHJH m _• BW BSI HI HI HI HI I LEGEND PRODUCTION SUPPLIES ON HAND (£2&2^^ I [ft l l ^ H i i H .CIVILIAN ALL OTHER CONSUMPTION , EACH SYMBOL REPRESENTS 5 BILLION BOARD FEET SOURCE:- WAR PRODUCTION BOARD U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1945
@FedFRASER