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FEDERAL
HOME
LOAN
BANK
Vol.
12, No. I
Washington, D. C.
OCTOBER 1945
Because the costs of war go on long after the
last gun is silent, to "Share the Care" becomes no less important than to "Back the Attack." The Victory Loan—
our last public drive—is at once an opportunity and an
obligation to show that the people of this country intend
to follow through on the many responsibilities that remain.
Members of the Federal Home Loan Bank
System have made a wartime record of which they may well
be proud. Their support of the previous war loan drives, as
well as their interim bond activities, has been a real contribution to the Treasury's financing and anti-inflationary
programs. This splendid record gives us every reason to
look to them for one more successful campaign.
Director, War Finance Division
United States Treasury
FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK
Contents
THE O U T L O O K FOR H O M E F I N A N C I N G
Some possible effects of postwar conditions.
Vol. 12
No. 1
OCTOBER 1945
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
POST-VJ D A Y M I G R A T I O N S
Critiques, by the Housing Market Service, National
Housing Agency, of recent population shift surveys.
G R O W T H O F THE S A V I N G S A N D L O A N INDUSTRY
IN A YEAR O F FULL PRODUCTION
Annual analysis of combined balance sheets of all operating savings and loan associations.
PROBABLE V O L U M E OF POSTWAR CONSTRUCTION.
Based on a study prepared by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics.
OUTSTANDING H O M E M O R T G A G E DEBT VIRTUALLY
UNCHANGED
Survey of trends in mortgage debt on 1 - to 4-family homes.
Page
3
4
5
9
12
STATISTICAL D A T A
New family dwelling units
Building costs
Savings and loan lending
Mortgage recordings
Sales of U. S. war savings bonds
FHA activity
Federal Home Loan Banks
Insured savings and loan associations
21 - 2 2
22-23
23-24
24-25
25
25
25
27
REGULAR DEPARTMENTS
Monthly Survey
17
Directory Changes of Member, Federal and Insured Institutions
News Notes
26
27
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
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.
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 THE BUREAU OF THE B U D G E T
Federal Home Loan Bank Revie\
THE OUTLOOK FOR HOME FINANCING
The lifting of wartime restrictions on construction, materials and the
utilization of credit for home repairs, together with the extension of
the period of notification of eviction under OPA regulations, holds
important implications for home financing.
Some possible effects of
these changes are discussed in this article.
•
FOR almost three and one-half years the home
building industry has operated within the confined scope allowed it under Order L - 4 1 . For four
full years it has functioned under a system of materials priorities. With the war now over, these
restraints upon residential construction have been
abandoned. Builders everywhere are turning to
meet the demand for new homes which has accumulated during the war years and to meet the added
demand which has been given voice by generally
higher income payments.
As this transition to peacetime construction is
occurring, mortgage lending institutions are taking
stock of the present situtation—identifying sound
markets, probing for danger points. With an unprecedented amount of liquid resources available for
investment, lenders are anxious that the rising
volume of postwar building be financed on a sound
basis, that mistakes of the past not be repeated.
Cost Considerations
Of concern to all is the upward movement of home
prices which has been particularly noticeable in overcrowded war production centers of the country. Not
being subject to price control regulations, prices for
existing houses rose abruptly in many localities
during the war as the supply of rental units was absorbed by inmigrant workers. To what extent will
this rising price trend for homes be carried over into
the postwar period? Although not identical with
the situation following the last war, there is sufficient
similarity between that period and the present to
give pertinence to an examination of trends of 27
to 25 years ago. Then, it will be recalled, the
greatest general price inflation occurred after hostilities had ceased rather than during the war years
of 1917 and 1918. So great was the rise in the cost
of building materials that the decline which took
place in the number of new homes placed under
construction in 1920 resulted in only a leveling of
construction expenditures. The record indicates that
new nonfarm residential construction did not go into
high gear until building costs returned to more realistic proportions.
October 7945
If the forecasts of a record volume of postwar
home building are to be realized, unwarranted increases in the prices of new homes must be avoided,
for the earlier estimates have been predicated upon a
construction program which will furnish new homes
for as broad a market as can be reached. From both
private and public sources have come warnings that
inflated prices may kill housing markets or arrest
their full development. The lending institution, by
the nature of its business, is concerned with the outlook for sustained values, the prospect of spreading
its risks over as broad a market as possible and the
assurance of a sound and active future market.
The greatest interest in construction and lending
naturally centers upon the provision of new homes.
However, there is also a pent-up demand for repair
and reconditioning of existing residences, largely
neglected during the war because of the limitations
upon the use of manpower and materials, as well as
credit restrictions under Regulation W. The lifting
of the curbs on the use of credit for these purposes,
the removal of priority regulations and the abandonment of Order L-41 will permit increased activity in
these lines to improve the existing homes.
The recent revision of eviction regulations by the
OPA to require a six-month instead of a three-month
period of notice may produce a slowdown in the turnover of existing homes. If this is the case, lending
institutions will probably notice an increase in construction lending and in loans for the repair and
modernization of homes, with some letdown in lending for home purchase. I t does not seem likely that
the volume of new building expected next year will
appreciably affect the demand for existing homes.
However, there may be some reluctance to bid on
this market in view of the definite assurance that
new dwellings are again being built in volume and
will be available in quantity in the foreseeable future*
To the extent that this is true, reproduction costs
will regain importance in value determination.
Building costs, however, may be many months in
settling to a realistic postwar level. The time involved may be expected to be influenced by the
(Continued on p. 15)
3
POST-VJ DAY MIGRATION
•
T H E shifting tides of World War I I produced
the greatest mass migration the United States
has ever seen within such a short time. Between
December 1941 and March 1945 more than 27,000,000 Americans, including those men and women
who entered the armed forces, changed their places
of residence. Jobs in the nation's unparalleled war
activities motivated the moving of over 15,000,000
persons, with long distance migration tending to flow
primarily westward toward the aircraft and shipbuilding centers on the Pacific Coast. The West
experienced a net gain of about 1,200,000 in civilian
population; the South showed a net loss of some
900,000, while the North lost approximately 300,000
civilians.
Among the most significant problems of the reconversion period are (1) the permanence of wartime
population shifts and (2) the volume and direction
of probable migration in the next few months. Under
the title, Migration After VJ Day, NHA has assembled and summarized several independent sample
surveys which attempt to answer these questions
for the country as a whole, for specific areas and for
selected groups of the population.
One difficulty in drawing conclusions from these
surveys is that all were made before VJ Day and
many before VE Day, when the individuals interviewed had not felt so acutely the necessity for personal postwar planning. This would probably affect
materially the current validity of surveys, especially
if the employment prospects had changed radically.
Keeping in mind these limitations, however, it is
possible to draw certain general conclusions from the
available data.
4
Postwar migrations of important proportions seem
likely to occur, despite the expressed intentions of a
sizable group of civilian war-migrants to " s t a y put.''
This reshuffling of civilians will probably be about
two-thirds as great as took place during the war
period. Unless it occurs within a brief interval,
however, it will have much less serious effects than
did wartime shifts on the individual communities and
on the economy as a whole. Existing community
facilities and services can be reestablished to accommodate returning families much more readily than
such services and facilities could be instituted during
the war in areas unprepared for a sudden influx.
Geographic Effects
The South will probably see the greatest outmigration, resulting in a considerable net loss of population for the section as a whole. The Southern Atlantic Coast states anticipate the heaviest* drain,
although the newer industrial centers throughout the
South may retain a fairly high percentage of their
population gains. The North may expect the
largest net increase as inmigration into that area,
estimated at twice the volume of the outmigration,
will probably be concentrated in the Middle Atlantic
and East North Central states. Very little net
change is indicated for the West where, it is believed,
departures will approximate arrivals. From the
data available it seems likely that localities which
grew most during the war will shrink most in the postwar exodus. Communities with relatively stable
populations during the war will probably not lose
many families through outmigration.
The type of employment available is also expected to influence the rate and volume of population changes. One-industry areas, for example, will
lose more people more rapidly than those with
diversified occupations, especially when the latter
can offer job opportunities in peacetime production.
Outmigration will be most extensive from communities where war agencies and military installations are situated, and next in order are shipbuilding
and aircraft centers.
A survey made among Army enlisted men in the
summer of 1944 revealed t h a t 80 percent of those
interviewed expected, when discharged, to return to
the state of their prewar residence. Only 9 percent
planned to go to a different state, while 11 percent
were undecided.
Fzdzral Home Loon Bank Review
GROWTH OF THE SAVINGS AND LOAN
INDUSTRY IN A YEAR OF FULL PRODUCTION
Although 1944 was a year of full production, there was little change in
the size of the mortgage portfolio despite a record volume of lending.
New funds were diverted principally to the purchase of Government
securities. While the ratio of reserves to total resources declined
slightly, additions to reserve and undivided profits accounts were the
largest reported since the depression.
•
T H E continued rapid expansion of resources of
all operating savings and loan associations
throughout 1944 is attributable principally to the
sustained high production level throughout the year.
As income payments mounted to a new peak in
annual volume, savings of individuals * invested in
these institutions rose to the highest figure on record,
standing about 0.1 percent above the previous high
point established in 1930. The gain of almost 15
percent in private savings which occurred last year
was the principal factor contributing to the 13-percent rise in total assets. As a result, by the end of
1944, the industry had attained a size 1 substantially
equivalent to the pre-depression peak in resources.
The war-induced forces which contributed to the
rapid growth in private savings were also showing
their influence on the asset side of the balance sheet.
Larger incomes and restricted spending opportunities
were increasing the amount of savable cash in the
hands of individuals, and available data indicate that
the flow of these funds was directed toward debt
reduction as well as into savings accounts. Although
the dollar amount of loans closed by savings and loan
associations last year was greater than in any similar
period since 1929, the high volume of repayments by
borrowers restrained to 3.5 percent the growth in the
outstanding balance of loans and contracts. Thus,
an accelerated turnover of mortgage funds as well as
the wartime curtailment of construction virtually precluded the investment of the bulk of new savings in
home loans.
In response to our war-financing needs and in order
to find employment for the expanding volume of
private investment capital, savings and loan associations further expanded their holdings of U. S. Government securities, almost doubling this item during
the single year, with the result that liquid assets
mounted to an unprecedented proportion of total
industry resources. Although this large accumula1
tion of liquid resources brought about a lower effective rate of earnings on the capital of the industry,
this expansion has occurred at a time when dividend
rates had, to a large extent, lost their old significance
as a factor in the attraction of savings. This is witnessed by the rapid growth in new investments which
took place uninterrupted by a rather general decline
in the rate of return paid on these savings.
The most important aspect of the large proportion
of liquid resources, though, lies in the added strength
which they have given to the industry. As the volume of new home building mounts during the postwar years, savings and loan associations will be in
condition to assure a ready supply of funds to finance
new home construction and purchase as well as the
repair and reconditioning of existing properties. In
addition, liquid funds should be ample to meet withdrawal demands of savers during the period of reconversion.
Again, the rate of growth in the general reserves
and undivided profits accounts was unable to pace
the growth in assets. However, both the dollar gain
during the year and the combined year-end balance
shown in these accounts are the largest since the
depression, possibly the largest in the history of the
industry.
Excluding pledged shares.
October 1945
5
Source of- Gain
Progress of Associations
As in 16 of the past 17 years, there was a shrinkage
in the number of operating savings and loan associations, a net decline of 219 being reported during
1944. At the end of that year, though, the 6,279
operating institutions had assets totaling $7,458,265,000, or almost 13 percent more than the total
held by operating associations at the end of 1943.
As a result of the contraction in the number of
institutions (which resulted in large part from consolidation and merger) and the $854,000,000 gain
in resources, the largest on record, the size of the
average institution increased about 17 percent during
1944, standing at $1,188,000 at the end of the year.
Adjusted to eliminate pledged shares, an item which
has virtually disappeared from the savings and loan
balance sheet with the abandonment of the shareaccount sinking fund loan, this average was $1,159,000 on December 31.
Savings and loan association members of the
Federal Home Loan Bank System accounted for
more than 86 percent of the resources of the industry at the close of last year, their assets totaling
$6,423,000,000. During the 12-month period, the
resources of these Bank System members expanded
by $884,162,000, or 16 percent, while nonmember
assets declined by $29,966,000. These figures reflect
in part the further absorption of industry assets by
the System. A continuing gradual decline in the
number of member associations resulted from the
process of consolidation and merger referred to above.
These changes produced an increase in the average
size of member associations from $1,497,000 at the
end of 1943 to $1,757,000 at the close of last year.
6
The gain of $854,196,000 in the assets of all
operating institutions, as is indicated by its magnitude alone, resulted primarily from the continued
growth in the volume of private savings which, as
of December 31, 1944, was almost 15 percent,
or $811,225,300, greater than reported 12 months
earlier.
Again, adjusting the data to eliminate a slight
distortion arising through the inclusion of pledged
shares, it will be seen that about 88.4 percent of
industry growth last year resulted from increased
investment (a rise of about 15 percent in private
savings offset by a decline of almost 49 percent in
investments by the Federal Government). Nonsavings liabilities, principally borrowed money,
accounted for 7.5 percent, and net worth (deferred
credits, guaranty stock, reserves and undivided
profits) was responsible for 4.1 percent of the
expansion.
Thus, on the adjusted basis, the increase which
occurred during 1944 in the assets of all operatingsavings and loan associations may be summarized
as follows:
Item group
New investment (net)
Non-savings liabilities
N e t worth
Increase
$777, 428, 000
66, 009, 000
36,475,000
T o t a l gain (adjusted)
Less: Decline in pledged shares
T o t a l gain (unadjusted)
879, 912, 000
25, 716, 000
854, 196, 000
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
What effects did this growth in resources produce
upon the composition of assets? As was previously
indicated, the foremost development of the year was
the continued expansion of holdings of Government
securities, up 96 percent from the end of 1943.
Offsetting a drop of more than 11 percent in cash on
hand and in banks, this rise in Government security
holdings resulted in an increase of over 58 percent
in liquid assets, the net addition in that category
($765,653,000) being more than four and one-half
times as great as the expansion in the balance of
loans and contracts outstanding ($167,933,000).
Holdings of stock of the Federal Home Loan Banks
increased by 11 percent ($6,227,000).
Other investment securities held by these institutions showed a decline last year, dropping almost 8
percent below the 1943 year-end figure, while the
book value of real estate owned was diminished by
more than 48 percent. Also, decreases were shown
in the book value of office premises, furniture and
fixtures and other assets.
As a result of these changes, there was a continuation of trends generally observable in the proportionate distribution of resources during recent years.
Loans and contracts outstanding, which had represented about 76 percent of industry assets at the end
of 1943, were but 69 percent of the total at the close
of last year, while liquid resources, which had represented about 20 percent of resources on the earlier
date, mounted to almost 28 percent by December 31,
1944. Fixed assets, including office premises, furniture and fixtures and other items, declined to less
than 1 percent from slightly above that proportion
at the end of 1943.
Insured Associations
Associations covered by Federal savings and loan
insurance reported assets totaling $4,995,184,000 at
the end of last year, about 20 percent above the
figure shown at the close of 1943, and representing
approximately 67 percent of all industry assets.
Resources of Federals increased 21 percent, while the
gain for state-chartered insured associations was 17
percent. Uninsured institutions showed a 1-percent
rise in assets during the year.
At the close of 1944, Federally chartered associations had the highest ratio of liquid resources, 30.9
percent, followed by insured state-chartered institutions with 28 percent and uninsured state-chartered
associations with 24 percent. Following expectations, the ratio for loans and contracts was in inverse
progression, uninsured state-chartered insti tutions
October 1945
Estimated number and amount of assets held by
all operating savings and loan associations, 1944 and 1943
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
Number
Assets
Federal H o m e Loan
Bank District
1944
UNITED STATES
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
6,279
1943
r
1944
1943
6,498 $7,458,265 '$6,604,069
1—Boston.
347
753, 302
347 820, 568
2—New York
777
797, 064
826 892, 862
1,080 1, 198 561, 145
3—Pittsburgh
513, 234
r
r
884, 719
897
4—Winston-Salem__
773, 964
911
808
5—Cincinnati
826 1, 333, 641 1, 193, 033
317
385, 490
6—Indianapolis
318 437, 967
749
614, 443
7—Chicago
758 687, 283
371
360, 201
380 417, 058
8—Des Moines _
304
271, 258
307 295, 736
9—Little Rock
289
264, 280
286 292, 562
10—Topeka
154
241, 135
155 294, 360
11—Portland
186
436, 665
186 540, 365
12—Los Angeles
f Revised.
reporting 73 percent of resources, while insured
state-chartered associations showed 69 percent and
Federals indicated a ratio of 67 percent.
Bank District Comparison
As in the past, the Cincinnati District showed the
greatest concentration of savings and loan assets
with 18 percent of the industry's resources. New
York ranked second with 12 percent and was followed by the Winston-Salem Bank District, with
slightly less than 12 percent, and the Boston region,
11 percent. Five of the twelve Bank Districts
showed ratios of loans and contracts greater than the
national average, 69 percent. These were the
Pittsburgh District, 78 percent; the Little Rock
region, 76 percent; the Boston area, 74 percent; the
Chicago Bank District, 73 percent, and the WinstonSalem region, 71 percent.
Associations in the Portland Bank District, showing the lowest ratio of loans and contracts to resources, 55 percent, indicated the highest proportion
of assets in cash and Government securities, 42 percent. Institutions in this area and in four other
Districts showed ratios of liquid resources to total
in excess of the national average of 28 percent, the
four remaining regions being Indianapolis, 34 percent; Cincinnati, 34 percent; Des Moines, 29 percent; and Los Angeles, 29 percent. The lowest
ratio of liquid items to total assets was reported in
the Pittsburgh District which, as mentioned above,
7
indicated the highest regional ratio for loans and
contracts.
Conclusion
The expansion of savings and loan resources which
took place in 1944 was the direct result of the high
level of income payments, supported in large part,
if not in bulk, by Government expenditures for war.
I n view of the problems of reconversion which now
face the country, it is possible that developments in
1945 may show some slackening in the rate of asset
growth. Certainly, in the years ahead, associations
will find a return of competition in the attraction
of savings, and an important part of their planning
for the future will be directed toward the encouragement of systematic savings. The revival of
mortgage lending opportunities and a possible lower
rate of savings flowing into these institutions in the
months ahead might mean that reserve ratios would
show a sudden expansion in the next year. Large
allocations to the reserve account, it will be recalled,
were unable to match wartime growth in assets.
Earlier, it was noted that resources, adjusted to
eliminate pledged shares, now approximate the predepression peak. Although the assets of the industry are as great as they were in 1930, savings and
loan associations today are immeasurably stronger
than they were then—stronger in their own right by
virtue of their unprecedented proportion of liquid
assets and the virtual extinction of the owned real
estate account; stronger also as a result of their line
of credit provided by the Federal Home Loan Banks
and the protection of accounts afforded by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation.
Comparative statement of condition for all operating savings and loan associations in the United
States, 1 9 4 4 and 1 9 4 3
[Source: Annual reports of s t a t e savings a n d loan supervisors-—Summary of members' consolidated annual reports]
[Dollar a m o u n t s are shown in thousands!
All operating associations
Ratio to total assets
Increase or decrease
Item
1944
1943
$4, 982, 556
19, 298
147, 965
60, 383
62, 251
1, 671, 115
31, 495
413, 065
52, 366
6,808
10, 963
$4, 793, 184
32, 826
181, 591
116,969
56, 024
853, 217
34, 125
465, 311
52, 594
6, 957
11, 271
7, 458, 265
6, 604, 069
1944
Percent
change
1943
Amount
Percent
66.81
0.26
1. 98
0. 81
0.83
22.41
0. 42
5. 54
0. 70
0. 09
0. 15
Percent
72.58
0. 50
2. 75
1.77
0. 85
12. 92
0. 52
7.04
0.79
0. 11
0.17
+ $189,372
- 1 3 , 528
-33,626
- 5 6 , 586
+ 6,227
+ 817,898
-2,630
- 5 2 , 246
-228
-150
-308
+ 4.0
-41.2
-18.5
-48. 4
+ 11.1
+ 95. 9
-7. 7
-11.2
-0.4
-2.1
-2.7
100. 00
100.0
+ 854, 19 6
+ 12.9
326
942
003
869
540
509
023
546
769
136
821
792
793
0.48
84. 54
2.46
1.70
0. 96
0. 51
0.47
0.39
0.41
0. 17
0. 24
5. 21
2. 46
1.05
83. 19
3. 17
1. 63
0.40
0. 60
0.47
0.45
0. 48
0. 24
0. 24
5.45
2.63
- 3 3 , 797
+ 811,225
- 2 5 , 715
+ 19,013
+ 45,469
-1,646
+ 3,833
-661
-1,389
-3,454
+ 2,580
+ 28,993
+ 9,745
-48.8
+ 14. 8
-12.3
+ 17.6
+ 71.3
-4.2
+ 12. 4
-2.2
-4. 4
-21.4
+ 16.3
+ 8.1
+ 5.6
6, 604, 069
100. 00
100.0
+ 854, 196
+ 12.9
ASSETS
Mortgage loans
Other loans
Real estate sold on contract
Real estate owned
F H L B stock
U . S. Government obligations
Other investment securities
Cash on h a n d a n d in b a n k s
Office building
F u r n i t u r e a n d fixtures
Other assets
,
Total assets
L I A B I L I T I E S AND C A P I T A L
U. S. Government i n v e s t m e n t s
P r i v a t e repurchasable c a p i t a l x
Mortgage pledged shares
Advances from Federal H o m e Loan B a n k s
Other borrowed money
Loans in process
Advance p a y m e n t s by borrowers
Other liabilities
Permanent, reserve or g u a r a n t y stock
Deferred credits
Specific reserves
General reserves
Undivided profits
Total liabilities a n d capital
1
35,
. 305,
183,
126,
72,
37,
34,
28,
30,
12,
18,
388,
183,
529
167
288
882
009
863
856
885
380
682
401
785
538
7, 458, 265
69,
, 493,
209,
107,
26,
39,
31,
29,
31,
16,
15,
359,
173,
Includes deposits a n d investment certificates.
8
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
PROBABLE VOLUME OF POSTWAR
CONSTRUCTION
Recent estimates by the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate a rapid
rise in the volume of residential building during the first five postwar
years. Average construction costs are expected to drop as the highcost market is saturated and builders turn to less expensive houses.
•
R U N N I N G on the average about one-third of
the anticipated total for all types of construction,
private nonfarm residential building 1 is expected
to climb steadily during the first five postwar years
to an annual volume of $4,450,000,000, according to
recent estimates of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
This would place expenditures for this purpose
during the fifth postwar year at the highest level
since the late twenties. The average annual outlay
over the five-year period, $3,950,000,000, would be
greater than the amount spent by private sources in
any year since 1929. In relation to more recent
activity, such average expenditures would be onethird more than the post-depression peak of
$2,973,000,000 estimated for 1941.2 Indications
point to brisk sales of privately built "promotional"
houses but private rental units seem likely to form a
considerably smaller part of residential building than
in the past. Rental quarters again will probably be
concentrated in apartment buildings, although the
volume of construction will lag considerably behind
prewar peaks.
It is estimated that an average of about 900,000
nonfarm dwellings will be started each year for the
five years immediately after VJ Day. This figure
includes approximately 50,000 publicly financed
units. The first postwar year will probably see approximately 550,000 private nonfarm homes started,
increasing each year to reach an anticipated total of
1,040,000 private dwelling units placed under construction during the fifth postwar year. Stated in
terms of 1940 construction costs, the average cost of
privately built dwellings is expected to be highest—
$4,200—during the first year. I t seems probable
that the annual average will range downward to
$3,550 by the end of the five-year period. This
assumes that simpler and cheaper houses will become
a larger part of the increasing volume of residential
construction.
1
Including additions, alterations and major repairs for which building permits
are customarily issued. All estimates are in 1940 dollars.
2
Forecasts relate to work started; estimates for prior years relate to work
performed.
October 1945
667228—45
<
Conditions revealed by the 1940 Census and
accentuated by war-spawned influences have produced a huge potential demand for residential construction after the war. Since 1940, housing shortages, military service by family heads and economic
pressures have caused families to " double u p " or
share living quarters. Furthermore, according to
the Census Bureau, the number of families has increased rapidly since 1940. This trend is expected
to continue, reaching almost 7,300,000 by 1955.
Many of the recently formed families have never
been set up as households or have temporarily abandoned that status. The National Housing Agency
predicts that 1,400,000 servicemen's households will
be created or revived soon after the war.
Effective Demand
World War I I has produced tremendous migrations of people, reminiscent of the pioneer movements
of the 19th century. This time, however, the flow
has been toward the war production centers—for
the most part a rural-to-urban drift which is likely
to result in a permanent major shift of population
to the industrial urban centers of the West and
South. Total housing needs will probably be
affected only slightly by these shifts but the effective
demand will be increased since only in rare instances
have these families been able to take along their
living quarters. Geographically, then, the pattern of housing needs will be quite different from
that recognized before the war. Even in areas of
declining population there will seldom be any surplus
of dwellings meeting reasonable standards of adequacy because usually there will be more substandard
units than migrating families.
Effective demand for residential construction will
probably respond to home financing terms which are
more favorable to prospective purchasers or builders
than those available during previous periods of active
building. Anticipating that FHA mortgage lending
procedures will be continued with certain minor
changes after the war, the Bureau of Labor Statistics
9
does not believe there will be any significant change
in interest rate in the five immediate postwar years.
"Although the long-range trend is unquestionably
downward as risk is reduced with greater stability of
neighborhoods and higher construction standards,
this is not expected to be effective in the early postwar y e a r s / ' according to the BLS study. There
must also be taken into consideration the stimulus
provided by the GI Bill of Eights which will affect
the market for houses selling as high as $10,000.
Supply
Despite wartime shortages of labor and materials,
there have been additions to the 1940 housing inventory. Excluding the 313,000 temporary public units,
during the 1940-1943 period 1,870,000 dwelling units
were constructed. Many of these were built in areas
where postwar reduction in employment is inevitable.
Some were definitely of inferior types, accepted
because of the financial circumstances of their occupants but not as a long-time housing asset. Others
were converted units, only some of which are permanently useful. The net increase of permanent
housing resources was, therefore, probably not more
than 1,700,000 units between 1940 and 1943.
Even at the time of the Census in 1940, the national vacancy rate for habitable units was only
approximately 3 percent. While this was not alarming, in itself, it did not allow any surplus housing for
future needs since a vacancy rate of 5 percent is generally accepted as a necessary "cushion." The several million substandard dwellings—estimated by
the NHA at 7,000,000 in 1940—could in many cases
only at prohibitive expense be brought up to reasonable standards for occupancy. By the end of the
war, at least 500,000 more pre-1940 units will have
deteriorated each year into substandard state. In
addition, about 50,000 nonfarm dwellings will have
been lost each year by fire or other disaster, demolition, abandonment or conversion to non-dwelling
uses.
However, counterbalancing conditions will partially offset potential demand. Noncorporate savings have reached an all-time high and wages in general may be higher after the war than in prewar
years. Nonetheless many families will continue to
have postwar incomes below $1,500. Few nonfarm
families with such incomes will be able to rent or buy
unsubsidized new units. Uncertainties regarding
future employment or permanent residence, and
preference for investments other than home ownership will also tend to retard home purchase or build10
ing. Common misconceptions concerning radical
changes in postwar home construction or equipment
may for a time hinder home purchases when experience demonstrates that early over-optimistic promises of postwar " dream houses" cannot be realized
on a mass scale iu the near future.
Composition of Building Activity
Wartime experience will affect operations in the
home building field. While there is always likely
to be a place in the industry for builders of one or
two houses at a time, the average size of projects
will probably be larger than in the prewar era.
An increasing volume of construction is forecast in
projects ranging from 25 to 100 houses. The most
promising major sphere for early expansion seems to
lie in the moderately expensive market for houses
priced from $7,500 to $10,000. Competition for this
market is likely to be based primarily on design,
finish and equipment rather than price. However,
since relatively few prospective purchasers can afford
to pay $7,500 or more for a home, this field cannot
sustain its expanded volume for more than a few years.
On the other hand, although operations at lower
sales prices require more careful planning because
of a lower gross profit per unit, they probably offer
a larger long-range opportunity to the home building
industry.
As in the recent past, it seems probable that larger
housing projects will be built in outlying sections of
the community where large tracts of land are available at attractive prices. If utilities must be installed on raw land, however, it may prove cheaper
to buy lots in sparsely built urban subdivisions
and demolish existing shacks if necessary so that
new houses can be interspersed on scattered vacant
sites.
In the early postwar years it does not appear
likely that private apartment construction will much
exceed 100,000 units a year, below both the prewar
peak of 257,000 and their anticipated future importance. Current trends seem toward smaller apartments, averaging about three rooms or less, to house
families without children or temporary households of
employed men or women. On the whole, apartment
construction is foreseen as motivated primarily by
investment considerations. Projects are therefore
apt to be larger than formerly to protect investments
through development of areas large enough to establish stable neighborhood characteristics. Bigger
projects would also permit reduced management and
maintenance costs.
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
Apartments
Apartments for average-income workers, close to
places of employment, are mentioned by the BLS
study as a relatively untouched field for development.
Several difficult problems remain to be solved before
this type of building would be practicable on a large
scale. I t is closely related to the problem of salvaging blighted urban areas. The cost and complexity of rehabilitating such regions, however, preclude their use for housing developments in the near
future on any extensive scale.
The lower yield to owners and mortgage holders
from low-rental apartment property calls for the
utmost economy in construction costs. To achieve
this, some sort of reorganization of the building
industry is needed to bring about more direct procurement of materials and better integration between
different kinds of site work. A uniform pattern of
annual operation to cut seasonal unemployment of
construction workers would probably also help
reduce building costs.
Numerous "village" type projects in the higher
rental class are expected to be erected in outlying
suburbs of larger cities. Like those in similar categories today, such units would be designed mainly for
families with incomes considerably above the average,
families without children, and temporary housekeeping groups. Prior to the war, there were some outstanding examples of direct investment by insurance
companies in apartment projects. Plans are already
well advanced for a number of similar projects to be
built in the early postwar period. Though permissive
legislation will be necessary in a number of states to
October 1945
allow such use of fiduciary funds, it seems possible
that housing will eventually become an accepted
major field for institutional investment, the BLS
reported.
The accumulated backlog of maintenance and
minor repairs needed by privately owned living
quarters is expected to average about $1,360,000,000
annually during the five-year period. Deferred
because of the war, this type of work awaits only the
release of necessary materials and manpower to
reach an estimated volume of $1,500,000,000 the
first year after the war. Although a drop to $1,300,000,000 is anticipated by the third postwar year,
that annual rate is expected to continue through the
fifth year.
Repairs and Alterations
A different pattern is predicted for annual expenditures covering additions, alterations, modernization
and major repairs to nonfarm residential structures.
In the first postwar year, the amount to be spent for
these purposes is estimated at $550,000,000, rising
to $850,000,000 in the third year and dropping back
to $750,000,000 during the fifth year after the war.
Since such jobs ordinarily require so much more
material than does maintenance work, the former
can reasonably be expected to trail the latter at first.
Construction volume of wartime public housing
has been falling rapidly during the past two years.
With the end of the war, however, local housing
authorities are expected to begin construction of
permanent slum clearance projects. Over the fiveyear period under discussion, it is thought that an
average of 50,000 such dwelling units may be erected
annually. The cost would rise from $95,000,000 in
the first year to $190,000,000 by the end of the fifth
year. This type of building is expected to continue
on a moderate scale but the results achieved will
probably be closely evaluated in light of the criticism
of publicly financed housing. The right kind of
slum clearance projects are slowly being recognized
as civic assets, according to the BLS study. Not
only do they add to the community's housing resources but they meet the acute need of those families unable to pay full commercial charges for decent
used or new housing.
Based on an estimated increase from $7,890,000,000
in the first year to $12,065,000,000 in the fifth year
after final victory, the total volume of all types of
construction financed by both public and private
sources is expected to average $10,900,000,000 annu(Continued on p. 26)
11
OUTSTANDING HOME MORTGAGE DEBT
VIRTUALLY UNCHANGED
The downward trend in the outstanding debt on 1- to 4-family homes
was halted last year. Repayments remained high but were almost
matched by a large volume of new lending.
•
AT the end of 1944 the total debt outstanding
on 1- to 4-family homes was substantially the
same as it had been at the close of the preceding year,
according to estimates by the Division of Operating
Statistics of the Federal Home Loan Bank Administration. The 1944 figure of $19,528,000,000 represented a decline of $14,000,000, or less than 0.1 percent, during the year.
The fractional decrease shown by the Division's
study indicates that the increased volume of new
lending on dwellings in this category has, for all
practical purposes, matched the high aggregate of
repayments in 1944. Thus the decline that has been
noticed since 1941 in the outstanding debt on 1- to
4-family homes was brought to a virtual halt last
year. A recent Census analysis 1 showing an increase of about 28 percent in home ownership in
nonfarm areas since 1941, however, would indicate
a probable shift within the over-all debt figure with
a tendency toward increased debt on owner-occupied
homes. These data, of course, show only the net
increase in the number of owner-occupied units and
do not estimate the total number of transfers. However, they do provide a partial indication of the rapid
turn over in existing structures; to the extent that
mortgage financing of such purchases represented
cancelation of previous contracts, it constituted no
addition to net mortgage debt.
From the meager amount of new building which
was possible under wartime restrictions, it is also
apparent that the bulk of lending which added to
the outstanding debt in 1944, as in the preceding
year, was concentrated in loans for the purchase
of existing properties and for their repair, maintenance and conversion. To a great extent, these
loans replaced earlier loans for new construction
which were being rapidly paid down as large wartime
incomes permitted accelerated debt retirement.
This has been bound to destroy the proportion as
between the various kinds of mortgages held in
a well balanced portfolio, and, in addition, has
1
Characteristics of Occupied Dwelling Units, for the United States.
1944. Bureau of the Census. Series H-45, No. 2, July 21,1945.
12
tended to increase the dollar volume of lending since
so many of these mortgages were for home purchases,
a large number based on rising property prices.
Estimates indicate that about $3,830,000,000 of
new loans were closed by all types of lenders in
1944. A comparison of this figure with the net
change in mortgage debt indicates more specifically
the approximate equalization of debt reduction and
new lending. For each $100 of new loans made,
about $100.36 was received in repayments on
outstanding debt balances. Although, as will be
seen in the accompanying chart, 1944 was the third
successive year in which repayments exceeded advances, last year showed a substantial drop from the
1943 ratio of $112 for each $100 of new loans.
Holdings by Type of Mortgagee
Last year miscellaneous lenders moved into the
increase column along with savings and loan associations and life insurance companies which had been
the only types of mortgagees to show a gain in the
balance of mortgages outstanding on 1- to 4-family
homes. As to the proportion of total loans made, the
relative order of the various types of lenders remained
substantially the same as in 1943—individuals and
others first, followed by savings and loan associations
October
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
Estimated balance of ouststanding mortgage loans
on 1 - to 4-family nonfarm homes l
[Dollar amounts are shown in millions!
P e r c e n t of
total debt
T y p e of l e n d e r
1944
1943
1942
1941
1944
S a v i n g s a n d loan associations
Life i n s u r a n c e c o m p a n i e s M u t u a l savings b a n k s - . __
Commercial banks
.
H o m e Owners' Loan Corporation
__ __. . . .
I n d i v i d u a l s a n d o t h e r s *_ _
.
Total
$4, 799 ' $4, 584 $4, 556 $4, 552
2,458
2,410
2, 255 1,976
2,660 2,700 2,730
2,570
2,450 2,480 2,470
2,410
1941
24.6
12.6
13.2
12.3
22.7
9.8
13.6
12.3
5.6
31.7
8.8
32.8
19, 528 ' 19, 542 19,908 20,095 100.0
100.0
1,091
6,200
1,338
6,100
1,567
6,350
1,777
6,590
T
1
Revised.
For a detailed description of the source of these estimates see F H L B REVIEW,
November 1939, p. 51; September 1940, p. 410; September 1941, p. 412.
* Includes fiduciaries, trust departments of commercial banks, real estate bond
companies, title and mortgage companies, philanthropic and educational institutions, fraternal organizations, construction companies, R F C Mortgage Company, etc.
and mutual savings banks. However, a 2-percent
rise in holdings of insurance companies brought
these institutions into fourth place, while commercial
banks, showing an estimated decline of 1.6 percent,
dropped back to fifth position. The Home Owners'
Loan Corporation, which has been in liquidation
since 1936, again had the smallest proportion of total
holdings of this type.
In spite of a relatively small gain during 1944 (1.6
percent) the miscellaneous group of individuals and
others continued to lead the field in their relative
volume of outstanding nonfarm home mortgage debt.
Following a rise of $100,000,000 to $6,200,000,000,
they accounted for 31.7 percent of the balance compared with 31.2 percent the year before.
Savings and loan associations showed the greatest
gain in holdings on small-family homes both percentagewise and in dollar volume—up almost 5 percent
to $4,799,000,000. This increased their proportion
of total holdings to 24.6 percent; in 1943 it was 23.5
with a dollar volume of $4,584,000,000.
Mutual savings banks reported a greater decline
in 1944 than they had the year before—down 3.4 percent compared with 1.5 in 1943. At the end of last
year their balance outstanding was $2,570,000,000,
or 13.2 percent of the total for all types of lenders.
I n 1943, the estimated $2,660,000,000 accounted for
slightly more—13.6 percent.
Life insurance companies reported a 2-percent
increase in 1- to 4-family mortgage holdings, bringing their dollar volume to $2,458,000,000, or 12.6
percent of the over-all balance on 1- to 4-family
properties. In 1943 they held $2,410,000,000—12.3
percent of the total. A drop of 1.6 percent in the
October 1945
balance estimated for commercial banks brought the
outstanding balance of these institutions down to
$2,410,000,000, or 12.3 percent of the total. In 1943
these institutions accounted for 12.5 percent.
The HOLC again showed the largest dollar decline
during 1944—reporting a decrease of $247,000,000
compared with a net increase of $233,000,000 for all
other types of lenders combined. A total of $1,091,000,000 was carried on the books of HOLC at the end
of 1944, 18.5 percent less than the year before. The
holdings of this corporation continued to represent
a decreasing proportion of the total balance outstanding—5.6 percent compared with 6.9 in 1943 and
16.5 percent in 1935, the year before HOLC commenced liquidation.
New Lending Operations
Total new mortgage lending last year (exclusive of
sales contracts) amounted to $3,830,000,000, an increase of 20 percent during the year compared with
a gain of only 1 percent in 1943. In contrast to 1943
when only savings and loan associations, miscellaneous lenders and the HOLC (through sales of owned
properties) increased the volume of lending on 1- to
4-family homes, 1944 figures showed that all types of
lenders, except the HOLC, shared in the year's gain.
Changes in proportionate participation, however, did
not alter their relative positions.
Savings and loan associations continued to account
for the largest proportion of all new lending—38
percent compared with 37.2 in 1943. Their aggregate loans last year totaled $1,454,000,000, representing a 22.8 percent increase.
Miscellaneous lenders (individuals and others), in
spite of the fact that they showed the largest perVOLUME OF ESTIMATED OUTSTANDING MORTGAGE LOANS
PRIVATE NONFARM l-TO 4-FAMILY HOMES
1 9 3 3 - 1 9 4 4 , BY TYPE OF LENDER
F'OOLLARS
25
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1942
1943
1944
13
Estimated amounts l o a n e d on 1 - to 4 - f a m i l y
nonfarm dwellings, 1 9 4 4 a n d 1 9 4 3
[Dollar amounts are shown in millions]
Type of lender
Savings and loan associations
Life insurance companies
Mutual savings banks
Commercial banks and their trust departments
Home Owners' Loan Corporation
Individuals and others
Total
Loans Loans Dollar Percent
made made change change
from
during during from
1944
1943
1943
1943
$1,454
300
140
$1,184
272
120
+$270
+28
+20
+22.8
+10.3
+16.7
601
31
1,304
515
54
1,038
+86
-23
+266
+16.7
-42.6
+25.6
3,830
3,183
+647
+20.3
centage increase during 1944, remained in second
place in the volume of new loans made last year. A
gain of 26 percent brought total loans for this group
to $1,304,000,000, which represented 34 percent of
the new lending of all types of mortgagees compared
with 32.6 percent the year before.
Increased lending activity in 1944, coupled with
the growing participation of savings and loan associations and miscellaneous lenders, was reflected in
the declining proportionate activity of other types of
lenders, in spite of the fact that all, except HOLC,
showed dollar increases. Commercial banks, although experiencing a 16.7 percent gain in the
volume of loans written ($601,000,000 in 1944),
accounted for the same relative volume of all activity as in the previous year—16 percent. Life insurance company lending rose 10.3 percent to $300,000,000, but represented only 7.8 percent of the
1944 loan volume whereas the year before the
proportion had been 8.5 percent.
Mutual savings banks came closer to maintaining
their relative participation which amounted to 3.7
percent last year as against 3.8 in 1943. Loans
amounting to $140,000,000 were written by these
institutions last year—16.7 percent more than their
1943 volume. The HOLC, which did the smallest
proportion of new lending (0.8 percent), reversed its
1943 increase (resulting from a larger volume of
sales and greater advances during that year) and
dropped 42.6 percent last year to $31,000,000.
FHA Activity
For the second successive year the annual volume
of F H A mortgages insuring loans on 1- to 4-family
homes declined—both in dollar volume and in proportion to the estimated amount of 1944 small-home
mortgage lending. Small-home loans written under
Title I I dropped from $244,000,000 in 1943 to
$216,000,000 in 1944, while Title VI lending (again
14
reflecting the tapering off of war housing) declined to
$491,000,000 from $518,000,000 in 1943. The 1944
total of $707,000,000—7 percent less than the volume
of small-home loans insured under Titles I I and VI
the year before—represented 18.5 percent of the
estimated 1944 amount of mortgage lending on 1to 4-family houses. In 1943, small-home loans
insured under Titles I I and VI amounted to
$762,000,000, or 24 percent of the estimated amount
of all small-home loans written in that year.
Savings and loan associations and commercial
banks were the only types of lenders to increase their
insured lending activity during 1944. Commercial
banks continued to be the heaviest participants in
the insured lending program with a $293,000,000
volume of insured lending in 1944, representing
41.4 percent of the total amount of insured mortgages, and 48.8 percent of the mortgage lending
done by these institutions in 1944. In 1943 insured
loans taken by commercial banks amounted to
$276,000,000, accounting for 36 percent of the total
amount of insured mortgages for the year and 53.6
percent of commercial bank lending on small homes.
Savings and loan associations were the only other
type of private lending institution originating a
larger proportion of insured mortgages on small
homes in 1944 than in 1943 (15.3 percent last year
compared with 12.3 percent in 1943), but the ratio of
insured mortgages to the total lending of savings
and loan associations declined again—from 7.9
percent in 1943 to 7.4 percent last year.
Insured Debt Outstanding
Despite the decline in F H A loans written during
1944, the balance of the insured debt outstanding
at the end of 1944 showed a 3.7 percent increase to
$4,146,000,000. This represented 21.2 percent of
the total portfolio of all lending institutions compared with 20.5 in 1943 when insured loans totaled
$3,998,000,000.
Again, as in 1943, the proportion of insured mortgages to total holdings increased for all types of
lenders, except the miscellaneous class. However,
the rate of increase in the estimated unpaid balance
of insured loans showed several variations from the
previous year. Mutual savings banks, which were
second in 1943, led in percentage increase last year—
up 19.2 percent, while the holdings of life insurance
companies, which had gained 20 percent in 1943,
rose only 6.8 percent last year. The 7.8 percent
increase shown by savings and loan associations was
considerably diminished from the 15.8 percent gain
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
Estimated holdings of F H A home mortgages, by
type of institution, 1944 and 1 9 4 3 1
[Titles II and VI, premium-paying; dollar amounts in millions]
Type of institution
Savings and loan associations
Insurance companies 2
Mutual savings banks .
'
Commercial banks.
_ __
Others.-. ___
Total
Amount
1944
_
..
_ ._
Percent of total
home mortgage
portfolio
1944
1943
$347
1,369
360
1,725
345
7.2
55.7
14.0
71.6
5.6
'7.0
53.2
11.4
70.9
5.8
4,146
21.5
20.5
»•1 Ee vised.
No published data are available on the institutional distribution of Title I,
Class
3 loans outstanding.
2
As reported by FHA, insurance company figures include a small percentage
for insurance companies other than "life."
the year before. Individuals and commercial banks
recorded declines of 2.8 and 0.7 percent, respectively.
Future Prospects
It seems probable that 1944 has brought the low
point in the balance of outstanding mortgage debt.
With lending for purposes other than construction
already at a high level in 1945, building done under
the H - 2 program supplemented by the lifting of
L-41 late in the year, will undoubtedly bring a spurt
in the total volume of lending. Also, it seems reasonable to expect a tendency toward a more normal
rate of repayment, at least during reconversion.
Also it will probably be true that loans for repair
and modernization will loom relatively large in
next year's operations, both because of the tremendous pent-up demand and the probable short-range
scarcity of materials for larger construction jobs.
The combination of these factors indicates the probability of a more normal distribution of lending next
year among the various loan purpose categories and
an increase in the balance of outstanding home mortgage debt.
G l Housing Hints
•
The Facts About Homes for Veterans, published last month by the National Housing
Agency, aims to give the returning veteran an explanation of the severe housing shortage and to
advise him on the best steps to take to find a home
in an admittedly difficult situation.
Following an explanation of that situation, the
pamphlet points out the necessity of adequate
housing services in all crowded communities and
advises veterans on how to look for such services.
October 1945
I t then deals with the advantages, processes and
problems of home ownership.
Chief emphasis is on the GI Bill, the gist of which
is given in brief and specific form. Procedures are
outlined for obtaining a loan to build or buy a home,
together with amortization tables, and veterans are
urged to take advantage of all possible safeguards.
Questions on personal and financial considerations,
and a checklist relating to the condition of the property, neighborhood and added costs give a realistic
approach to the venture of home ownership. The
pamphlet declares that many evidences of high
purchase and building costs, while they do not mean
that it is impossible to get a "good buy," make expert advice essential. I t adds: "No ethical lending
institution should finance a home you do not seem
able to pay for—it would not be doing you a favor
if it did. You would only lose the home and much
of your investment in the end."
Copies of this pamphlet are available from the
Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C ,
at 5^ apiece, or $3.75 per 100 copies and up.
Home Financing Outlook
(Continued from p. 3)
restoration of the flow of the proper materials
through the normal distributive outlets and the adjustment of inventories, to say nothing of the problems of reconverting mill and factory production.
Also, there is the matter of regaining or replacing
skilled labor lost during the war. If this process is
complicated by labor-management disputes and
strikes, it too may have a drastic effect upon building
cost trends. In addition to increasing the cost of
materials and labor rates, delays in construction
resulting from slow deliveries or strikes may add
considerably to overhead expenses. While in the
case of homes in the "luxury" price brackets, increased overhead might be absorbed to some extent
in the builder's profit, construction for sale or rental
in the lower ranges probably will show a greater
degree of sensitivity to changes in overhead items.
Not only to guard against the contingency of a
reversal in values but also to assure the broadest
possible market sustained over a long period of time,
it is to the interest of every mortgage lending institution to avert unnecessary increases in home
prices. To do this, there must be a continual
evaluation of loan policies, not only for their immediate internal effects but for the influence that they
will exert upon the real estate market.
15
RESIDENTIAL BUILDING ACTIVITY AND SELECTED INFLUENCING FACTORS
/935-/939-/00
BY YEARS
BY MONTHS
INDEX
220
/
I 111M
200
ADJUSTED FOR SEASONAL VARIATION
PRIVATF
CONSTRUCTION^.
1 8 2 FAMILY
DWELL.UNITS
^
S \
{FED. HOME LOAN BANK A D M . ) . /
U.S.C EPT DFLA a RECORD 3
180
(
/
f
r
160
\
140
^
f /
/
f
V
120
.•**•
5S.£ LN. LEM D . ^
v*SV(
l-LD. HOMJ E L N . BK.A
I00\
/
/
/
•
\.
IV
i
/l v
/
\
\ \.
60
f
V^
t
/ V S V G S a LN LEND.
/
/
v/
.PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION
//
80
r _ J 1 a 2 FAMILY DWELL. UNITS
/k
\~ ..-'
40
'
NUNtAHM
^.-V^
-"•
FORECLOSURES
fNONFARM
( F - H HDMF 1 N RK ADMI
20
FFORECLOSURES
1 1
0
140
J - RF^TQ
120
1 1
H U . S. DEF>T OVIABOR)
100
^ |
V
\
80
I
I 1
i
i
1 1
[
r -
r,T~r •
1 1
1 1
L
1
1
l 1
—
4
HtNlb
I I (U.S.
mhlfi DEPT MATERIA
OF LAB DR)
1
i
^-BUILDING MAftKfAL KWJt/'fcS
.^*
I
*" V o n
i
,«•••'
U-J^crd,_'..*—^
1
I-HT
60
280
P
—
PR / P P -- Oe
1 1 1 1
1 1
1 1 1 1
1 1
ADJUSTED
1 !
i i
i
FOR SEASONAL
260
l
240
-»—>. ^ • • ^ • 1 ^
1
i i
i
i i
i i
i i
VARIATION
1
l
1
I
l
f INDUSTRIAL PRODi JCTION
INDLISTRIAL PRODUC
yr\0N-^
220
FED. KL3C R V C BUMR D)
\
r
/
j
•
...»••—•••* + _.-"*
/1
180
//
/'/
/y
160
^*
<zZl „ . —
* ^ / M com; PAYMEN7 s
f /
200j
^•••••i
\
\
-—":,
"•••••*„
**...
-*«^
MF6. EA!PLO\ 'MEN TS
'*>..#
i
140
/
120
*V>
I00\
*r INCOME PAYMENTS
( U S . DEPT OF COMMERCE)^}
>*
80
60
v"
%
> V /'"*./
Km
.At
\
/
*s
V ^V
"^
"*\*
j£
r^*'
*MFG. EMPLOYMENT
(U.S. DEPT OF LABOR)
1 1
1930 '31 '32 *33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 4 0 41 42 43 4 4
INDEX
DEPARTMENT STORE SALES
250 r
1935-1939 = 100
A
^
w
J-/~
Aw^
1 1 1
1943
1
THOUSNEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION
25
URBAN AREAS - NO. OF OWELL. UNITS
/\A
'V
16
I
i
i i
1
1944
1
^WHOLESALE
180
i i
1 1 1 1, 1 1 1 1
1945
COMMODITY PRICES
1935-1939 «100
-
^\r
nl.,!n!,i
1 1
LUMBER^!
BUILDING MATERIALS^
!
l/V
, , 1 , •1 M 1 n
Ml n l n l u
.
/ I / / INDUSTRIAL:
lUnilCTDIAl'
ALL
JVlrWiuMi,,
MIMIMIMIMIML.IMI.•!•.!,,!.,
lllllllllll
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
«
«
«
ONTHLY
SURVEY
»
»
»
HIGHLIGHTS
/. Savings and loan associations reported new mortgage loans of $173,663,000
in August—greatest monthly volume since the late
twenties.
A. New construction loans registered a sharp rise of two and three-quarters times the August 1944 volume and accounted for
more than one-third of the increase in total lending.
B. Lending for all purposes increased in August, with home purchase loans continuing to account for the largest portion.
II
A new August record of $489,389,000
was set for recordings of nonfarm mortgages of $20,000
or less—almost 14 percent over the
August 1944 figure.
A. All types of lenders shared in the 4-percent increase over July recordings.
B. Again leading all other lenders, savings and loan associations recorded 37 percent of the total.
III. Residential construction activity declined 19 percent during August but stood 48 percent above the same 1944 month.
A. An increasing proportion of privately financed construction was apparent in August 1945 compared with ratios in July and in
August 1944.
B. The gain displayed in the January-August period of 1945 amounted to 3 percent over the like period last year.
IV. Extending the recent gradual upward trend, the index of construction costs for the FHLBA standard house rose slightly to
V. Repayments to FHL Banks, totaling $18,951,000,
reached the second highest volume ever recorded during August.
of advances outstanding fell to $112,451,000
by August 31.
135.8.
The balance
VI. At the lowest ebb since March 1942, August industrial production fell to 188 on the Federal Reserve Board's seasonally adjusted index.
ft ft ft
BUSINESS CONDITIONS—Production
reflected war's end
Cancelation of war contracts, which followed
immediately after Japan's acceptance of peace
terms, dropped industrial production for August to
the lowest point since March 1942. As indicated
by the Federal Reserve Board's seasonally adjusted
index (1935-1939=100) it stood at 188, down 23
points from July. This decline was chiefly in the
machine and transportation equipment industries.
By September, however, steel output had begun
to show the effects of conversion to peacetime
production. The receipt of a large volume of
orders from the automobile and other steel-consuming industries brought a noticeable rise.
The first actual measure of net changes in total
factory employment since the end of the war showed
a decline of 1,600,000, or 11 percent, between
July 31 and August 31. This survey, conducted
by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, indicated that
seven-eighths of the cut occurred in the metalchemical-rubber industries which produced the bulk
of munitions output.
However, small decreases
were noted during August in nearly all non-munitions industries. Total manufacturing employment declined from an estimated 13,900,000 to
12,300,000 during this period, compared with drops
of 300,000 to 400,000 in the months immediately
preceding VJ Day.
October 194S
Early effects of industrial reconversion were also
evident in data released by the Bureau of Employment Security. Total claims for unemployment
compensation (including waiting period and compensable claims) jumped from a weekly average of
about 300,000 to almost 1,000,000 by August 25.
Department store sales in August stood at 199 percent of the Federal Reserve Board's seasonally adjusted index, based on a 1935-1939 average. Although this was down 19 points from the July figure
it was still well above the 187 shown in August 1944.
Currency in circulation has continued to show
weekly gains since hostilities ceased. For the week
ending August 11, the U. S. Treasury reported a
daily average of $27,277,000,000 which increased
progressively to a daily average of $27,999,000,000
for the week ending September 15. This was considerably above the corresponding figures for last
year—$22,921,000,000 and $23,516,000,000 respectively.
[1935-1939=100]
Type of index
Home construction (private)
Rental index (B LS)
Building material prices
Savings and loan lending i._.
Industrial production i
Manufacturing employment
Income payments i
r Revised>
August July
1945 I 1945
79.8
79.1
108.3
108.3
131.5
131.2
236.6
224.7
188.0 '211.0
144.3 ' 150. 5
237.3 '243.4
Percent August Percent
change 1944 change
+0.9
0.0
+0.2
+5.3
-10.9
-4.1
-2.5
41.7
108.2
129.5
188.9
232.0
170.4
234.0
+91.4
+0.1
+1.5
+25.3
-19.0
-15.3
+1.4
i Adjusted for normal seasonal variation.
17
B U I L D I N G ACTIVITY—Long-term
increase still apparent
The increase in home building evident since early
this year continued throughout August when the
12,903 new family dwelling units reported in that
month represented a gain of approximately 48 percent over the same month last year. This was the
result of a 75-percent increase in privately financed
construction and a 90-percent drop in public building. All F H L B Districts shared in the 1945 gain.
The upswing is further evident in a comparison
of cumulative eight-month activity in the two years.
During the January-August period of 1945, a gain
of 3 percent was noted over the same 1944 period.
Cumulative seven-month figures, on the other hand,
showed a 2-percent decline between 1944 and 1945.
Although above the level for the like 1944 month,
activity during the month was lower than in July.
August authorizations for the construction of new
family dwellings slumped 19 percent to 12,903 from
15,911 the preceding month. This was almost entirely due to a decline of 2,813 in the number of
publicly financed units which totaled only 144 in
August and accounted for but 1 percent of all building. The decrease in private construction amounted
to only about 1.5 percent. [TABLES 1 and 2.]
upward from July, the composite index advancing
fractionally to 131.5. During the year ending in
August, the price index of all building materials
increased 1.5 percent.
[TABLES 3, 4 and 5.]
M O R T G A G E LENDING—Post-depression
peak reached in August
New mortgage loans aggregating $173,663,000
were placed on the books of savings and loan associations in August, marking the greatest volume of
lending in any month since the late twenties and
exceeding by more than 25 percent the figure for the
like month of last year. Although home purchase
loans accounted for the largest portion of the
$35,000,000 increase in lending over August 1944
(about 44 percent), the sharp gain in construction
lending is the most significant feature of the month's
activity. Construction loans, up to approximately
two and three-quarters times the volume shown for
the corresponding month of last year, accounted for
more than one-third of the increase in total lending
over the figure for that earlier month.
Home purchase loans represented almost 69
percent of the month's activity, showing a substantial
proportionate decline from the better than 76 percent
TOTAL LOANS MADE BY ALL SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS
B U I L D I N G COSTS—Gradual
increase continued
Construction costs for the F H L B A standard
house, which have been moving up gradually for
the past several years, rose again during August.
The index of labor costs advanced fractionally to
140.9 and materials rose to 133.1, bringing the total
index to 135.8. In July the total cost index stood
at 135.6 percent of the 1935-1939 base period.
Since August of last year advances of 2.6 percent in
labor costs and 1.4 percent in the cost of building
materials have raised the total index 1.9 percent.
According to Department of Labor data, the
wholesale prices of all building materials also moved
UNITED STATES - BY TYPE OF ASSOCIATION
Is
BY MONTHS
TOTAL
Uu.
o**$y
FEDERALS*.
J
^ ^.
s&
sA
*/
^ , , , , TTl
U
V
STATt• CHARTERED
1EMBEfS
NC
,r
f
<s
SERS^i
,,,,
1944
1945
UNITED STATES - BY PURPOSE OF LOAN
J-HOME PURCHASE
! - CONSTRUCTION
Construction costs for the standard house
\ -REFINANCING
l-RECONDITIONING
|-OTHER
[Average month of 1935-1939=100]
Element of
cost
Material
Labor
Total___
p
Percent August Percent
1944 change
change
August
1945
July
1945
133. 1
140.9
133. 0
140. 6
+ 0. 1
+ 0.2
131. 3
137.3
+ 1.4
+ 2.6
135. 8
135. 6
+ 0.1
133.3
+ 1.9
p Preliminary.
18
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
N e w mortgage loans distributed b y purpose
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
Purpose
Construction
H o m e purchase
Refinancing
Reconditioning
Other purposes
August
1945
$20,
120,
17,
3,
11,
Julv
1945
730 $17, 658 + 17.4 $7, 589
+ 6. 9 105, 050
557 112, 761
+ 9. 8 14, 152
146 15, 622
971 3, 351 + 18. 5 3,067
+ 2. 3 8, 816
259 11,007
173, 663 160, 399
Total
PerPerAugust
cent
cent
1944
change
change
+ 173.
+ 14.
+ 21.
+ 28.
+ 27.
2
8
2
5
7
+ 8. 3 138, 674 + 2 5 . 2
reported during August 1944. On the other hand,
construction lending accounted for about 12 percent
of the total, whereas in the like month last year it
had constituted only 5 percent. Loans for reconditioning, which were almost 30 percent greater in
dollar volume than a year ago, gained slightly as a
proportion of total August lending—2.3 percent in
1945 compared with 2.2 percent in 1944.
By type of association, Federals loaned 47 percent
of the total for the first eight months and statechartered member institutions accounted for 44
percent, placing activity by members of the Federal
Home Loan Bank System for this period at over
nine-tenths of all lending by savings and loan associations.
nonfarm recordings of $20,000 or less during the
month were greater than activity reported in July.
The most substantial increase in this respect occurred
in the Chicago region—up 12 percent from the preceding month. The largest decline—more than 8
percent—occurred in the Pittsburgh area, while
recordings in the New York District were nearly
4 percent less than in July and in the Boston region
the August volume was fractionally below that for
the preceding month.
Cumulative recordings through August of this
year totaled $3,515,536,000, an advance of 16.5 percent over the $3,017,739,000 in the like period of
1944. In this comparison, life insurance companies
were again the only type of lender that failed to show
an increase over 1944. At the same time that their
recordings declined 8.6 percent, increases shown by
the remaining groups ranged from 2.1 percent for
the miscellaneous class to 26.4 percent for individuals. [TABLES 8 and 9.]
M o r t g a g e recordings b y t y p e of mortgagee
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
T y p e of lender
[TABLES 6 and 7.]
MORTGAGE RECORDINGS New
monthly record established
Reversing the slight declines of the two preceding
months, nonfarm mortgages of $20,000 or less recorded during August rose to a new peak for the
s e r i e s w h i c h w a s established in 1939. The
$489,389,000 reported during August was more than
4 percent above July recordings, almost 14 percent
greater than the August 1944 total, and 45 percent
above the volume of mortgages recorded during that
month of 1942—the first year of war.
All types of lenders shared in the gain over July,
the increases ranging from 0.9 percent for life
insurance companies to 6.7 percent for savings and
loan associations. These associations also led again
in the relative proportion of total recordings, reaching a new high of 37 percent of the monthly volume.
In all Bank Districts the dollar volume of mortgage
recordings during August exceeded the figures reported for that month of last year, with gains varying from 4 percent in the Indianapolis area to 22
percent in the Topeka region. In nine Districts,
October 1945
Savings and loan associations _ _
Insurance companies
Banks, t r u s t companies.
M u t u a l savings banks _ _
Individuals
Others
Total
PerPerPercentCumulacent
cent
change
tive
refrom of Aug. cordings of total
1945 (8 months) recordJuly a m
ount
ings
1945
+
+
+
+
+
+
6.
0.
3.
2.
2.
3.
7
9
5
4
6
6
+ 4. 3
FHLB SYSTEM-August
37. 0 $1,
4.2
19. 1
3. 8
24. 5
11. 4
230,
158,
663,
126,
910,
426,
610
095
707
225
760
139
35.0
4. 5
18. 9
3.6
25 9
12. 1
100. 0 3, 515, 536
100. 0
repayments
approached record high
F H L B financing activity, although at a higher
level than earlier in the year, brought a decrease in
the balance of outstanding advances in August. The
total at the end of the month stood at $112,451,000—
down 7.5 percent from the July figure of $121,608,000.
All Banks but Winston-Salem and Portland reported
lower balances in August than at the end of the
previous month. The over-all balance for the month
was $1,000,000 less than in August 1944.
In August F H L Banks advanced a total of
$9,794,000 to members. Although this represented
a 31.6 percent increase over the total amount ad19
vanced in July, it still was only approximately oneninth of the year's record advances of $86,734,000
made in June during the Seventh War Loan. The
August figure was over twice that reported for the
same month of 1944 and represented the largest advance made during any August since 1941. Only
four Banks—Boston, New York, Little Rock and
Cincinnati—did not share in the over-all gain.
Repayments of $18,951,000 to the 12 Banks during August this year approached the highest volume
received in that month since the System was established in 1932, being exceeded only by the record
$26,516,000 in August 1944. The August 1945
amount represented a gain of 8.3 percent over July
repayments of $17,501,000 and was the largest
monthly total since March 1945. The increase was
concentrated in five Districts: Boston, Cincinnati,
Chicago, Des Moines and Portland. [TABLE 12.]
F L O W OF PRIVATE REPURCHASABLE CAPITAL
During August new investments and withdrawals
among all operating savings and loan associations
were well above the levels of the corresponding
month last year, although activity in these lines was
considerably less than in July, when both new
investments and repurchases reached record monthly
volumes. Investment of private savings in these
institutions during August was estimated at $196,241,000, or 23 percent greater than in the like month
of 1944. This placed total new investments during
the first eight months of the year at $1,532,027,000,
22 percent above those in the corresponding period
last year.
Showing a gain of about 21 percent over the like
month of 1944, withdrawals for August were estimated at $104,265,000. The eight-month cumulative figure for 1945 reached $862,775,000 to stand 18
percent ahead of the 1944 total. I n the first eight
months of the* current year $56.30 was withdrawn
for each $100 of new savings received, while in the
similar period a year ago the ratio stood at $58.40.
INSURED ASSOCIATIONS—High
mark reached in new lending
At the close of August there were 2,475 insured
savings and loan associations with total resources
aggregating $5,666,000,000. New mortgage loans
made during that month reached a new high of
$131,200,000, an 8 percent gain over July and a 3.5
percent increase over the previous peak in June of
this year.
Private capital accounts increased nearly $74,000,000, or 1.5 percent during August, to a total of
$4,913,900,000.
[TABLE 13.]
Share investments and repurchases, August 1945
FEDERAL SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
The 1,469 Federal savings and loan associations
on August 31 represented a gain of two for the
month—one newly chartered association and one
converted from a state association. The total assets
of Federals amounted to approximately $3,595,000,000 at the end of the month. These associations
extended $82,200,000 for new loans, a 3-percent rise
over the $79,600,000 loaned during June. Private
capital accounts were increased by $48,000,000 to
a total of $3,137,100,000.
I t e m a n d period
Share investments:
l s t 8 m o s . 1945_
l s t 8 m o s . 1944_
Percent change
August 1945
August 1944
Percent change._ _
All associations
All insured
associations
Uninsured
members
Nonmembers
$1, 532,027 $1,239,677 $182, 270 $110,080
U, 251,993 $975, 167 $167, 542 $109, 284
+ 27
+9
4-22
+1
$196, 241 $156, 189 $23, 778 $16, 274
$159, 865 $126, 641 $19, 768 $13, 456
+ 23
+ 20
+ 23
+ 21
Repurchases:
- l s t 8 m o s . 1945 _ $862, 775 $671, 769 $119, 458 $71, 548
l s t 8 m o s . 1944i $731, 119 $545, 745 $111,804 $73, 570
-3
+7
+ 23
+ 18
Percent change
$104, 265 $83, 357 $12, 770 $8, 138
August 1945
$85, 921 $64, 619 $12, 736 $8, 566
August 1944___
-5
+ 29
+ 21
Percent change.__
(0
Repurchase ratio:
(percent)
l s t 8 m o s . 1945___
l s t 8 m o s . 1944. __
August 1945
August 1944
*
56. 3
58. 4
53. 1
53. 7
54.2
56.0
53. 4
51. 0
65.5
66. 7
53. 7
64. 4
65.0
67. 3
50. 0
63. 7
Progress in number and assets of Federals
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
Number
Class of
association
New
Converted
Total
1
Approximate assets
August July 31, August 31,
1944
31, 1945
1945
633
836
1, 469
J u l y 31,
1944
632 $1, 239, 875 $1, 220, 423
835 2, 355, 212 2, 331, 731
1,467
3, 595, 087
3, 552, 154
Less than 1 % increase.
20
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 August 1945, by Federal Home Loan Bank District and by State
[Source: IT. 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 family
dwelling u n i t s
Federal H o m e Loan B a n k District and State
August
1945
U N I T E D STATES
$27, 412
11,676
6,098
$49, 385
$19, 500
730
357
119
1,684
454
_ ___
_ _ __
_ _ _
____.__._
_ . ___ _ ___
56
19
199
•18
80
101
4
70
1
13
2
283
50
940
63
423
395
14
287
1
27
6
56
19
199
18
65
29
4
70
1
13
2
283
50
940
63
348
120
14
286
1
27
6
_ _
_
587
84
2,768
314
395
84
2, 035
314
32
52
1, 659 i
1,109
136
178
184
211 |
32
'52 1
940
1,095
136
178
___
_
_
.
372 i
215
...
_______
. . . .
.
. . .
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.
Maryland
N o r t h Carolina
South Carolina
.
._
Virginia.
.__ . . .
_ .
_ _
_ ... _
N o . 5—Cincinnati.
_
_ ...
_.
No. 6—Indianapolis-.. . . .
Indiana.
Michigan...
_
_
____
_
______
1
. ___ . . . _ _
. . .
N o . 7—Chicago
...
Illinois
Wisconsin-..
. . . .
_
_
N o . 8—Des M o i n e s
I o w a .__
_ _ _
Minnesota
Missouri...
North Dakota
S o u t h D a k o t a __
___ _
.
_
.
_
... _ _
_
_____
N o . 9—Little R o c k
Arkansas
._
Louisiana.._ _
Mississippi..
N e w Mexico
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.. _____
October 1945
....
_
_
_ _ ___
_
August
1944
1,759
.
._
August
1945
August
1944
$53, 848
N o . 3—Pittsburgh
Kentucky
Ohio
Tennessee
August
1945
August
1944
191
__
_ _ _ _ .....
Delaware.
Pennsylvania
W e s t Virginia
August
1945
8,738
.
_._ _
_ _ _
N e w Jersey
N e w York
August
1944
Permit valuation
372
...
_ „
N o . 2—New Y o r k
Permit valuation
12, 903
_
N o . 1—Boston _ _
Connecticut
Maine
Massachusetts . _
New Hampshire
__.
R h o d e Island.__
Vermont.,.
N u m b e r of family
dwelling u n i t s
__ _
_
-
494
137
2,574
566
376
137
1,844
566
15
425
54
44
87
6
90
2,295
189
132
425
9
15
307
54
44
87
6
90
1, 565
189
132
425
9
1, 731
1,248
5,397
3, 732
1,521
809
4,817
2,189
287
221
402
244
40
244
61
232
157
288
372
75
7
32
12
305
508
788
1,379
622
169
808
106
1,017
196
846
1, 049
113
24
29
20
1, 455
287
89
362
220
40
240
61
222
149 1
98
297
75
7
32
12
139
508
397
1,210
616
169
804
106
1, 007
167
315
800
113
24
29
20
721
954
647
4,996
2, 235
918
616
4,856
2,147
51
652
251
14
506
127
146 1
4,034
816
26
2, 001
208
35
632
251
14
475
127
106
3, 934
816
26
1, 913
208
970~
903
5,418
3, 499
954
484
5, 298
2,067
1, 233
4,065
693
1,374
246
724
196
707
1,233
4,185
713
2, 786
246
708
188
296
1,306
961
345
1,103-
6,696
4, 750
1,019
604
5,619
2,742
746
357
4,848
1,848
3,100
1,650
691
328
289
315
3,841
1,778
1,229
1,513
764
100
3,359
226
764
100
3,359
226
84
349
257
35
39
24
27
43
73
49
100
84
349
257
35.
39
24
27
43
6
296
1,860
928
143
132
73
49
100
6
296
1,860
928
143
132
1,826
1,458
3,964
2,987
1,751
1,151
3,695
2,245
148
128
134
21
1,395
45
399
146
47
821
274
208
197
116
3,169
23
1,084
108
134
1,638
148
128
129
21
1,325
45
151
138
47
770
274
208
196
116
2,901
23
464
104
134
1,520
480
233
1,742
473
468
207
1.702
406
160
123
77
120
36
16
57
124
654
373
349
366
82
16
233
142
148
123
77
120
14
12
57
124
614
373
349
366
21
10
233
142
651
500
2,655
1,761
599
492
2,522
1,734
67
72
215
104
176
17
10
9
138
135
207
1
322
197
698
556
821
61
67
68
167
104
176
17
10
9
135
130
207
1
322
189
573
556
821
61
11
26
362
522
811
2
2,768
2,134
12, 520
6,139
2,554
1,295
11,954
4,410
55 i
2,661
52 1
32
2,087
15 1
215
12, 244
61
90
6,034
15 l
55
2,447
52
32
1,257
6
215 1
11, 678
61
89
4,313
8
.
4
13
26
362
546 1
812 1
2
4
21
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 construction
A u g u s t 1945 J u l y 1945
Private construction
1-family dwellings
2-family dwellings L . .
3-and-more-family dwellings
Public construction
2
_
_. __
__
Total urban construction. _
Permit valuation
M o n t h l y totals
J a n u a r y - A u g u s t totals
A u g u s t 1944
1944
1945
A u g u s t 1945
J u l y 1945
J a n u a r y - A u g u s t totals
A u g u s t 1944
1945
1944
12, 759
12, 954
7,273
76, 769
68, 735
$53,310
$51, 675
$22,854
$280, 212
$216, 293
11,059
617
1,083
10, 464
780
1,710
5,443
655
1,175
63, 296
5,216
8,257
52, 214
7,418
9,103
47, 279
2,106
3,925
43, 519
2,701
5,455
17,073
2,427
3,354
238, 771
17, 446
23, 995
164, 608
25,119
26, 566
144
2,957
1,465
9,013
14, 333
538
8,149
4,558
18,899
36,486
12, 903
15, 911
8,738
85, 782
83,068
53,848
59,824
27,412
299, 111
252, 779
i Includes 1- and 2-family dwellings combined with stores.
Includes multi-family dwellings combined with stores.
2
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]
1944
1945
1943
1942
1941
1940
1939
Sept.
Sept.
Sept.
Sept.
Sept.
•
Federal H o m e Loan Bank District
and city
Sept.
N o . 1—Boston:
Hartford, Conn
Portland, M e
Boston, Mass
Manchester, N . H
Providence, R. I
N o . 4—Winston-Salem:
B i r m i n g h a m , Ala
Washington, D . C
A t l a n t a , Ga-- _
_
Baltimore, M d . . .
Richmond, Va _
'
_
-
__ _
_
. _ ' . . .
N o . 7—Chicago:
Chicago, 111 _ _
Milwaukee, Wis
N o . 10—Topeka:
D e n v e r , Colo __. .__
W i c h i t a , K a n s -_
Omaha, Nebr _
_
O k l a h o m a C i t y , Okla_ .
__
.
June
Mar.
Dec.
Sept.
137.3
152.5
133.6
127.1
142.2
136.8
152.5
133.6
127.1
141.9
136.8
152.5
133.4
127. 1
141.8
136.5
152.4
133.2
124.4
141.4
135.2
151.4
133. 2
124. 2
139.7
130.3
140.9
128.6
115.4
132.3
128.5
124.8
125.8
108.7
120.7
123.7
114.3
116.7
103. 7
116.1
103.2
99.2
104.5
98.1
106. 9
100.0
98.8
101.7
97.0
103.2
127.4
144. 5
148.3
152.7
133.8
127.4
144.5
145.7
150.5
133. 5
128.5
144.4
145.8
150.2
133. 5
128.5
143. 3
146.4
150.1
133.1
128.4
142.8
143.8
148.8
130.2
121.6
134.5
134.8
142.7
123.0
115.9
126.7
122.7
128.7
116.0
113.5
116.1
117.4
119.5
109.7
'98.6
105.2
100.0
* 106.5
96.8
97.1
104.4
94.9
100.0
98.9
115.7
145.8
113. 0
144.4
112.8
142.3
112.8
142.4
112.4
142.1
110.7
133.9
109.3
131.6
103.9
116.3
99.3
109.1
99.5
106.2
127.3
136. 8
137.3
151.5
128.2
136.7
137.3
151.4
128.0
135. 9
136.3
151.3
125.3
135.9
134.5
151.3
122.8
135.7
134.0
149.4
115.9
129.1
126.4
144. 3
113.4
126.5
126.5
131.8
109.2
117.3
117.7
125.9
96.8
' 107. 2
105.6
«• 107.3
99.8
107.7
103.1
104.9
1
Indexes of September 1941 and thereafter have been revised in order to use retail material prices collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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 FHLB 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 r November; and those in Districts 1, 4, 7 and 10 report in March, June, September and December.
Revised.
22
Fee/era/ Home toon Bank Review
Table 4 . — B U I L D I N G COSTS—Index of building costs (or the standard house
[Average m o n t h of 1935-1939=100]
p Aug. 1945 J u l y 1945 Junel945
E l e m e n t of cost
Material
Labor
_
_.
Total
M a y 1945 A p r . 1945 M a r . 1945 F e b . 1945 J a n . 1945 D e c . 1944 N o v . 1944
Oct. 1944 Sept. 1944 A u g . 1944
133.1
140.9
133.0
140.6
132.7
140.5
132.5
' 140. 4
132.4
140.5
132.3
140.4
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
135.8
135.6
136.3
' 135.1
135.1
135.0
134.7
134.5
134.4
134.4
133.9
133.7
133.3
- Revised.
p Preliminary.
Table 5 . — B U I L D I N G COSTS—Index of wholesale prices of building materials in the United States
[Source: U . S. D e p a r t m e n t of Labor]
[1935-1939=100; converted from 1926 b a s e
All b u i l d i n g
materials
Period
Brick a n d
tile
Cement
Paint and
paint materials
Lumber
Plumbing
and heating
Structural
steel
Other
1943: A u g u s t
125.3
109.0
102.7
r 161. 5
126.4
118.!
103.5
109.:
1944: A u g u s t
September
October
November
December
129.5
129.5
129.9
130.0
130.0
110.8
111.7
115.3
115.6
115.9
105.8
106.3
107.0
107.2
107.0
171.9
171.5
171.3
171.3
171.3
129.7
129.7
130.3
130.7
130.7
121.4
121.4
121.4
121.4
121.4
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
111.6
111.7
111.7
111.7
111.7
1945: J a n u a r y
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
130.4
130.6
130.8
130.8
131.0
131.1
131.2
131.5
121.5
121.6
121.8
121.7
121.8
122.1
122.9
122.8
106.9
108.7
109.1
109.1
109.1
109.1
109.1
109.1
171.3
171.4
171.3
171.4
171.9
172.5
172.7
172.9
130.7
130.8
130.7
130.7
130.8
130.7
130.4
131.9
121.4
121.4
121.4
121.4
121.4
121.7
121.7
122.7
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
103.5
111.9
112.0
112.3
112.3
112.6
112.8
112.8
112.8
Percent change:
A u g u s t 1945-July 1945—.
A u g u s t 1945-August 1944
+0.2
+1.5
-0.1
+10.8
0.0
+3.1
+0.1
+0.6
+1.2
+1.7
+0.8
+1.1
0.0
0.0
+1.1
r
0.0
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
[ T h o u s a n d s of dollars]
P u r p o s e of loans
Class of association
Period
1943
January-August
August
__
__
__
_
_ _ .
-
__ _
__ _
. _
1944
January-AugustAugust..
September._
October
N o v e m b e r __
December..
_
_ _
_ __
_______
_ _ _ _
__ __
____
___
_____
_
_
__
__ ___
1945
January-August
January . _
February _
March
April.- _
M a v - _, _
June
July
August _
October 194S
_
_
__ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _
__
_ ___ _. __ .
_ _ _ _ __
__ _ ._
_
Refinancing
Reconditioning
L o a n s for
all other
purposes
Total
loans
Nonmembers
Construction
Home purchase,
$106, 497
$802, 371
$167, 254
$30,441
$77,398
$1,183,961
$511, 757
$539, 299
$132, 905
68,002
10, 616
495, 387
82,894
114,113
14, 600
19, 410
2,809
48, 298
6,470
745, 210
117, 389
318, 630
51,172
340, 286
53, 497
86, 294
12, 720
95, 243
1,064,017
163,813
30, 751
100, 228
1, 454, 052
669, 433
648, 670
135, 949
73, 346
688, 982
107, 245
20, 258
65, 026
954,857
437,415
426, 401
91,041
7,589
5,923
6,095
4,635
5,244
105, 050
101, 884
101,461
90,182
81, 508
14,152
14,495
15, 253
13, 265
13,555
3,067
3,160
2,699
2,507
2,127
8,816
8,993
9,720
7,785
8,704
674
455
228
374
138
64, 400
63, 489
61, 965
54, 978
51, 586
61, 377
59,162
60,945
52, 241
49, 921
12,897
11,804
12,318
11,155
9,631
92, 787
843, 986
123, 215
23, 454
84, 555
1,167, 997
550, 906
513, 718
103, 373
3,772
3,081
7,406
9,541
13, 032
17, 567
17, 658
20, 730
76, 495
78,140
105, 307
113,684
120, 244
116, 798
112, 761
120, 557
12,167
12, 524
15,922
16,800
15,887
17,147
15, 622
17,146
1,868
1,994
2,559
2,951
3,396
3,364
3,351
3,971
7,999
10, 270
10, 287
10, 778
10, 520
12, 435
11, 007
11, 259
102, 301
106, 009
141, 481
153, 754
163, 079
167,311
160, 399
173,663
46, 439
49, 900
69,430
71, 375
75, 607
79, 603
76, 355
82,197
46,452
46, 575
60, 688
67, 955
71,921
74, 219
70, 264
75, 644
9,410
9,534
11, 363
14, 424
15, 551
13, 489
13, 780
15,822
Federals
138,
134,
135,
118,
111,
State
members
23
Table 7.—LENDING—Estimated volume of new
loans by savings and loan associations
Table 8.—RECORDINGS—Estimated nonfarm
mortgage recordings, $20,000 and under
AUGUST 1945
[Thousands of dollars]
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
C u m u l a t i v e n e w loans
(8 m o n t h s )
N e w loans
Federal H o m e
Loan
B a n k District and
class of association
August
1945
Julv
1945
August
1944
1945
1944
Federal H o m e Loan
B a n k District
and State
Percent
change
U N I T E D STATES
UNITED
$173,663 $160, 399 $138, 674 $1,167,997 $954,857
STATES
Boston..
. _
Federal__
State member
Nonmember... .
_ _•
New York
82,197
75, 644
15,822
76, 355
70, 264
13, 780
64,400
61,377
12,897
11,461
10, 868
10,353
4,760
5,081
1,620
4,381
4,687
1,800
4,045
5,176
1,132
17,143
Federal
.
State member
Nonmember -
__
Pittsburgh
_.
6,181
8,266
2,696
15, 889
5,483
7,773
2, 633 '
550,906 437,415
513,718 426,401
103,373 91,041
+25.9
+20.5
+13.5
78, 770
69,397
+13.5
32,437
36, 598
9,735
25,410
35,099
8,888
+27.7
+4.3
+9.5
13,032
114,069
81, 645
+39.7
4,359
6,620
2,053
40,188
54, 766
19,115
24,941
42, 387
14,317
+61.1
+29.2
+33.5
13, 881
12,094
11,866
97,009
79, 380
+22.2
6,734
4,430
2, 717
6,258
4,036
1,800
5,129
3,830
2,907
45, 973
33,467
17,569
36, 047
26, 796
16, 537
+27.5
+24.9
+6.2
22,668
19,449
15,338
144, 513 113,277
+27.6
59, 846
46, 512
6,919
+28.1
+27. 5
+23.7
194,214 164,192
+18.3
_.
.-
Connecticut
Maine
_. ._
M a s s a c h u s e t t s - - __
New Hampshire
R h o d e Island.___-_ .
Vermont
New York, .. . . .
N e w Jersey
New York
Pittsburgh-.
Delaware-. _
Pennsylvania
W e s t Virginia
Winston-Salem
Federal
State m e m b e r Nonmember.
Winston-Salem
Federal
State member
Nonmember
Cincinnati
.__
Federal
_._ . _ , __
State m e m b e r . . .
Nonmember
Indianapolis
.
Federal
State member Nonmember.
Chicago
Federal-..
. _
State member _
Nonmember
._ .
Des Moines
Federal.
State, m e m b e r
Nonmember..
Little Rock
Federal
State member
Nonmember
_.
Topeka
Federal.- . . . .
State member
Nonmember
Portland
Federal
State member
Nonmember
.
.
.
Los Angeles
Federal . . .
State member
Nonmember—
24
. ._
11,581
9,476
1,611
10,314
7,923
1, 212
7, 673
6, 651
1,014
28,442
27,836
25, 344
76, 643
59,311
8, 559
11,596
14, 329
1,911
11,345
12, 228
1,771
83,389
97,173
13, 652
68,187
82,368
13,637
+22. 3
+18.0
+0.1
9,133
8,618
8,271
64, 672
53,329
+21.3
5,038
3,757
338
4,646
.3, 711
261
4,071
3,777
423
34, 706
27,059
2,907
26, 001
24, 807
2,521
+33.5
+9.1
+15.3
132,649 107, 938
+22.9
44,736
54,244
8,958
+25. 7
+22.3
+12.3
69,867
59, 260
+17.9
35, 851
24,819
9,197
30, 501
21,224
7,535
+17. 5
+16.9
+22.1
6,049
55, 303
51,473
+7.4
2,768
3,199
82
27, 376
27,186
741
21,345
29, 552
576
+28.3
-8.0
+28.6
17,487
15, 300
8,227
10,018
1,300
7,221
9,073
1,193
6,817
7,288
1,195
56, 223
66, 365
10,061
11,303
9,572
9,396
5,980
3,983
1,340
4,933
3,409
1, 230
5,247
3,304
845
7,746
7,607
3,665
3,985
96
3,871
3,609
127
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
South Carolina
..
Virginia
Cincinnati
12,363
13, 601
2,478
19,545
Kentucky
Ohio
Tennessee
Indianapolis.
Indiana
Michigan
Chicago
_
-.
Illinois .
Wisconsin.
. _
Des Moines
Minnesota . . .
MissouriNorth Dakota
South Dakota
Little Rock
Arkansas - Lousiana.
.
Mississippi _
N e w Mexico
Texas. ._.
Topeka
Colorado
.
K a n s a s __
_ ..
Nebraska . _
O k l a h o m a _. .
8,523
8, 315
6,927
59,140
46, 355
+27.6
4,657
2,346
1,520
4,677
2,280
1,358
3,732
1,997
1,198
32,053
17,095
9,992
24,135
13,003
9,217
+32.8
+31.5
+8.4
5,485
' 5,178
4,528
40,007
30, 690
+30.4
3,475
1,948
62
3,399
1,629
150
2,855
1,550
123
24,419
14,454
1,134
20, 349
9,126
1,215
+20.0
+58. 4
-6.7
18, 333
17,486
12, 270
117,784
97,921
+20.3
Los Angeles.
9, 576
7,805
105
6,359
5,757
154
61,648
55, 425
711
55,917
41,283
721
+10.2
+34.3
-1.4
Arizona _
California
Nevada
9. 536
8, 753
44
Individuals
Other
mortgagees
Total
$181,156 $20, 359 $93, 358 $18,488 $120, 015 $56, 013 $489, 389
+22.3
Boston..
F e d e r a l . . _. _.
State member _ . _ Nonmember.
-
Savings Insur- B a n k s M u and
tual
and
ance
loan
savcom- t r u s t
associa- p a n i e s comings
panies banks
tions
Portland
. . ___
Idaho.
. . . _.
Montana
Oregon. _. __
Utah
Washington...
Wyoming
14,098
364
4,377
9,623
6,577
2,642
37,681
1,643
653
10,115
415
1,062
210
221
13
119
11
1,890
281
1,343
192
587
84
1,904
724
5, 569
715
373
338
1,938
517
3,027
305
552
238
902
55
1,293
38
340
14
8,498
2,243
21,466
1,676
2, 914
884
14,836
1,665
7,689
6,762
16, 571
5,821
53, 344
4,346
10,490
663
1,002
3,398
4,291
888
5,874
4,634
11, 937
2,256
3,565
16,185
37,159
13, 590
1,689
7,951
536
6, 960
2,762
33, 488
248
12, 253
1,089
143
1,318
228
185
6,248
1,518
90
446
308
5,919
733
84
2,508
170
1,058
28, 692
3, 738
17, 489
2,812
6,368
178
15, 930
4,861
47, 638
674
2,920
2,019
1,866
4,560
2,392
418
2,640
227
463
668
239
143
545
210
317
430
646
1, 033
1,294
882
439
464
1,180
178
1,020
1,875
5,749
1,418
1,654
1,310
731
2,173
351
569
1,356
590
209
618
324
844
2, 702
6,473
10, 825
5,407
7,626
5,304
2,147
7,154
36,026
1,717
11,910
490
6,757
4,730
61, 630
3,343
31,624
1,059
388
713
616
1,055
9,532
1,323
490
390
5,813
554
198
1,700
2,832
5,374
49,872
6,384
10, 614
1, 938
9,161
23
4,098
1,787
27,621
6,865
3,749
859
1,079
3,688
5,473
23
1,199
2,899
795
992
13, 429
14,192
21, 589
1,342
7,351
34
8,325
9,773
48,414
16,837
4,752
907
435
4,305
3,046
34
5,009
3,316
9,105
668
36,163
12, 251
10,810
1,964
7,873
316
5,602
4,716
31, 281
2,887
4,235
3,063
419
206
170
346
1,387
37
24
1,661
2,089
3,719
158
246
958
1,436
2,887
148
173
349
1,406
2,901
44
16
6,025
9,828
13,957
806
665
9,216
2,377
2,368
8,488
2,633
25,082
828
2,319
504
169
5, 396
138
270
123
7
1,839
451
128
296
166
1,327
601
1,836
544
338
5,169
61
519
138
13
1,902
2,079
5,072
1,605
693
15, 633
9,341
843
2,944
6,353
1,757
21, 238
1,531
2,909
1,253
3,648
101
178
279
285 .
629
742
483
1,090
3,371
718
589
1,675
599
303
165
690
6,231
4,850
2,769
7,388
5, 335
689
4,807
526
4,289
2,029
17, 675
461
367
1,467
442
2,319
279
55
17
416
133
68
207
220
659
685
2,681
355
99
308
437
1,764
311
1,138
331
75
29
352
131
1,398
44
1,106
1,070
4,757
1,702
8,031
1,009
2,959 20,559
30,065 12, 502
84,297
80
607
2,859 19,804
148
20
198
1,101
28, 695 12, 265
269
39
2,264
81,475
558
18,212
.
278
17,852
82
316
427
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
Tabic 9 . — M O R T G A G E RECORDINGS—Estimated volume of nonfarm mortgages recorded
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
Savings a n d loan
associations
Banks and trust
companies
Insurance
companies
M u t u a l savings
banks
O t h e r mortgagees
Individuals
All mortgagees
Period
Total
Percent
Total
Total
Percent
Percent
Total
Total
Total
Percent
Percent
Total
Percent
$1,563,678
33.9
$256,173
5.6
$877, 762
19.0
$165, 054
3.6 $1,134,054
24.6
$613, 908
13.3
$4, 610, 629
100.0
1, 014, 469
149, 835
146,151
.
148,131
134,359
120, 568
33.6
34.8
35.1
35.0
34.1
33.5
173,031
22, 646
22, 432
20, 985
20, 543
19,182
5.7
5.2
5.4
5.0
5.2
5.3
588, 022
83, 094
77, 000
76,181
71, 752
64, 807
19.5
19.3
18.5
18.0
18.2
18.0
104, 217
15, 920
15, 447
16, 552
15,176
13, 662
3.5
3.7
3.7
3.9
3.9
3.8
720, 727
104, 215
104, 479
109, 767
103, 513
95, 568
23.9
24.2
25.1
26.0
26.3
26.5
417, 273
55, 066
50, 676
51, 223
48, 296
46, 440
13.8
12.8
12.2
12.1
12.3
12.9
3, 017, 739
430, 776
416,185
422, 839
393, 639
360, 227
100. 0
100.0
100. 0
100. 0
100.0
100. 0
1, 230, 610
111,480
111,176
151,361
157,181
172, 421
176, 051
.
169, 784
181,156
35.0
31.4
32.8
34.9
34.5
35.4
36.1
36.2
37.0
158,095
17, 882
16, 034
20, 669
19, 718
21, 459
21, 801
20,173
20, 359
4.5
5.0
4.7
4.8
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.3
4.2
663, 707
65,109
63, 933
80. 000
88, 749
91, 023
91, 336
90,199
93, 358
18.9
18.4
18.9
18.5
19.5
18.7
18.8
19.2
19.1
126, 225
12, 500
10, 343
13,599
15, 680
18,981
18,572
18, 062
18, 488
3.6
3.5
3.1
3.1
3.4
3.9
3.8
3.9
3.8
910, 760
99, 200
93, 248
114,971
118,713
125, 849
121, 800
116,964
120, 015
25.9
28.0
27.5
26.5
26.1
25.8
25.0
24.9
24.5
426,139
48, 407
43, 963
52, 737
55, 749
57, 702
57, 481
54, 087
56, 013
12.1
13.7
13.0
12.2
12.2
11.8
11.8
11.5
11.4
3, 515, 536
354, 578
338, 697
433, 337
455, 790
487, 435
487, 041
469, 269
489, 389
100. 0
100.0
100. 0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100. 0
100.0
100.0
1944
January-August
A u g u s t . . . . _ _ -.
September
. ...
October.._ _ . . . . .
November
....
December
Percent
1945
January-August
January
February
March.
April
_
Mav
June... . . .
.
Julv
August
.
Table 1 0 — S A V I N G S — S a l e s of war bonds 1
Table 11.—FH A — H o m e mortgages insured 1
[Thousands of dollars]
[Premiuir l p a y i n g ; t h o u s a n d s of dollars]
Period
Series G
Series F
Series E
Total
Redemptions
Title I I
Title V I
(603)
Period
Existing
New
1944
$12, 379,891
499,357
_
590, 827
598, 570
.
806, 817
1, 855, 300
$772,767
8C3, 819
653, 222
712,133
684,424
1,194, 712
1,467, 673
1,031,778
571, 286
42,034
30, 695
26, 487
23,112
62, 940
178,003
47,409
21,629
A u g u s t __
September...
October
November
December
1945
January
._
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
17, 807
15, 953
13, 653
42, 680
124, 669
$2, 891, 427 $16,044, 085
85, 272.
602, 436
692,066
85, 286
695,094
82, 871
173,858
1,023,355
405, 880
2, 385,849
$3, 263,168
272,125
277,445
394,846
376, 053
358, 572
1, 074,180
847,990
889, 076
837, 636
1, 540,089
2,178,055
1, 294,475
699, 74C
333, 443
317,083
437,892
381,198
404, 209
382, 536
406,103
515,161
228, 327
164,073
150,456
130,100
282,437
532, 379
215, 288
106, 825
1944: A u g u s t
September
October
November
December
1945: J a n u a r y
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
1
U. S. Treasury War Savings Staff. Actual deposits made to the credit of
the U. S. Treasury.
__
...
Total
insured
at end of
period
$90
79
40
54
31
$20, 256
19,967
21,941
21,646
18, 269
$48,166
42, 592
43, 354
38, 053
36, 573
$5, 781, 961
5, 844, 599
5,909, 934
5,969,687
6, 024, 560
67
27
37
63
80
374
347
666
19,006
14,085
16, 480
14, 813
22,272
18, 841
18, 207
17, 286
38, 640
31,417
29,886
26,885
23, 707
20,413
19,056
14, 992
6,082, 273
6,127,802
6,174, 205
6, 215, 906
6, 262,025
6, 301, 653
6, 339, 263
6, 372, 207
* Figures represent gross insurance written during the period and do not take
account of principal repayments 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
[Thousands of dollars]
P r i n c i p a l assets
L e n d i n g operations
Federal H o m e Loan Bank
Advances
Repayments
Advances
outstanding
Cash*
C a p i t a l a n d p r i n c i p a l liabilities
Government
securities
Capital2
Debentures
Member
deposits
Total
assets i
$226
440
816
2,589
263
957
1,658
650
312
163
785
935
$523
.834
1,579
1,128
2,511
1,016
4,633
1,813
472
235
550
3,657
$9,195
6,191
9,137
12, 666
8,956
7,424
21,680
7,111
4,040
3,113
2,390
20, 548
$807
5,782
2,655
971
2,162
1,470
1,552
660
693
1,116
547
1,246
$11,028
27, 445
11,370
7,134
30, 548
16,625
10, 574
10, 442
8,636
8,220
9,856
11, 649
$20, 256
28,241
17,231
18, 438
28,491
15, 466
23, 984
13,838
12, 705
10,825
8,760
16,893
0
0
$4,000
0
2,500
4,000
5,000
3,500
500
1,000
1,000
10, 500
A u g u s t 1945 (combined total)
9,794
18, 951
112,451
19, 661
163, 527
215,128
32,000
46,235
297, 524
J u l y 1945
7,444
17, 501
121,608
18, 505
154,936
214, 339
32,000
43, 642
296,601
A u g u s t 1944
4,072
26, 516
113, 674
25, 974
132, 691
204, 524
44,000
22, 744
273, 903
Boston
New York
Pittsburgh . _ _
Winston-Salem
Cincinnati.
Indianapolis
Chicago
Des Moines
Little Rock
Topeka..
Portland
Los Angeles
1
_
_ _
_
__
"..__
__
.
_ _
Includes interbank deposits.
October 1945
. _ ___
. . __
_ .
2
$901
11,429
2,030
421
11,072
6,231
4,950
967
252
716
1,100
6,166
$21,158
39,690
23, 275
20,863
42,107
25, 716
33, 951
18, 311
13,460
12, 545
12 864
33, 584
Capital stock, surplus, and undivided profits.
25
Table 13.—INSURED A S S O C I A T I O N S Progress of institutions insured by the FSLIC
[Dollar amounts are shown in thousands]
Operations
Number of
associations
P e r i o d a n d class
of association
ALL
Total
assets
New
New
mortgage p r i v a t e
investloans
ments
Private
repurchases
667,060 $104,008 $126, 641
713, 815 101, 658 122, 016
774,160 100, 642 129, 938
88, 227 115, 008
867,068
83. 408 142,291
012, 662
$64, 619
56,102
54, 719
52, 378
45, 985
51.0
46.0
42.1
45.5
32.3
76, 215
79,479
110, 287
113, 296
121,808
126, 824
121, 572
131, 239
195, 077
125, 769
138, 709
133, 651
130,182
163,156
196,944
156,189
123, 943
63, 089
71,488
65, 701
62,980
56, 279
144, 932
83, 357
63.5
50.2
51.5
49.2
48 4
34 5
73 6
53 4
Repurchase
ratio
prolonged period this time. I t is also recognized that
the figures presented here would have to be revised
considerably should postwar public policy provide
for extensive construction primarily to stimulate
employment or should public building be drastically
curtailed. Either course of action would be reflected
in the volume of private construction as well as in
the amount of public building itself.
INSURED
1944: A u g u s t
September
October...
November
December
. ,.
__
'._.
1945: J a n u a r y
February
March
April
May
J u n e . . -_ July
August,.. .
2,461
2,460
2,462
2,462
2,466
$4,
4,
4,
4,
5,
2,466
2,463
2,465
2,469
2,469
2,471
2,473
2,475
5, 035, 626
5,076, 554
5,136, 903
5,204,641
5, 292,169
5, 549, 563
5, 594, 461
5, 666, 351
1,465
1,464
1,465
1, 464
1,464
2. 934, 647
2, 961, 860
3,000, 365
3. 059, 556
3,168, 731
64,
63,
61,
54,
51,
400
489
965
978
586
82,105
79,126
85, 297
75, 372
93,400
w
40, 825
35, 570
33, 746
32, 665
26,049
49.7
45.0
39.6
43.3
27.9
1,464
1,464
1,465
1,465
1,466
1,465
1,467
1,469
3,178,132
3, 200, 324
3. 237, 942
3, 280, 506
3, 337, 648
3, 528,027
3, 552,154
3, 595,087
46, 439
49, 900
69, 430
71, 375
75, 607
79, 603
76, 355
82,197
129, 640
82, 862
91, 627
88, 356
85, 977
106, 770
129, 958
102,190
84, 624
41,374
46, 574
41, 856
40,063
33, 601
100, 301
55,016
65.3
49.9
50.8
47 4
46 6
31.5
77.2
53.8
FEDERAL
1944: A u g u s t
September
October
November
December
1945: J a n u a r y
February..
March
April
May..
June.
July
August
...
.-
1945: J a n u a r y . .
February
March
April
May.. .
June
July
August
DIRECTORY
m£gp CHANGES
A U G U S T 1 6 - S E P T E M B E R 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 . 2
N E W JERSEY:
Red Bank:
# Mainstay Federal Savings and Loan Association, 21 Monmouth Street,
South Orange:
# South Mountain Federal Savings and Loan Association, 8 South Orange
Street.
N E W YORK:
Peekskill:
*0 People's Savings and Loan Association, 910 Main Street.
DISTRICT N O . 3
PENNSYLVANIA:
STATE
1944: A u g u s t
September
October
November
December
dtHfc
tt
996
996
997
998
1,002
1,002
999
1,000
1,004
1,003
1,006
1,006
1,006
1,
1,
1,
1,
1,
732,
752,
773,
807;
843,
413
015
795
512
931
1, 857,494
1,876,230
1, 898,961
1, 924,135
1, 954, 521
2,021, 536
2, 042, 307
2,071, 264
39, 608
38,169
38, 677
33, 249
31, 822
29, 776
29, 579
40, 857
41,921
46, 201
47, 221
45, 217
49,042
44, 536
42, 890
44,641
39, 636
48, 891
23,
20,
20,
19,
19,
794
532
973
713
936
65,437
42, 907
47, 082
45, 295
44, 205
56, 386
66,986
53,999
39, 319
21,715
24,914
23, 845
22, 917
22, 678
44, 631
28, 341
53.4
47.9
47.0
49.7
40.8
60.1
50.6
52.9
52.6
51.8
40.2
66.6
52.5
Postwar Construction
(Continued from p. 11)
Imperial:
00 Montour Valley Savings, Building and Loan Association, Sauers Building, Main Street.
DISTRICT N O . 4
FLORIDA:
Melbourne:
0 First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Brevard County, Arcade
Building.
MARYLAND:
Baltimore:
**##00 Acadia Federal Savings and Loan Association, 404 North Howard
Street.
NORTH CAROLINA:
Greensboro:
** Gate City Life Insurance Company, 301 South Elm Street.
DISTRICT N O . 5
OHIO:
Mt. Vernon:
# Citizens Building, Loan and Savings Association, 6-8-10 East Vine Street.
DISTRICT N O . 9
ally. Of this average, $7,896,000,000 would be
spent for privately financed building while $3,028,000,000 would be absorbed by public construction
of all kinds. About 50 percent of annual private
construction expenditures will probably go for private
nonfarm residences; 30 percent for nonresidential
structures; 14 percent is expected to be absorbed by
utility construction; and 6 percent of the total will
be devoted to the erection of various farm buildings and homes.
Severe industrial conflict or " turbulent economic
conditions" such as followed the last war might
change this forecast substantially but it is believed
that such conditions are unlikely to prevail for a
26
TEXAS:
Alice:
**Alice Federal Savings and Loan Association, 59 North Wright Street.
*0 Alice Savings and Loan Association, 59 North Wright Street.
El Paso:
00 First Federal Savings and Loan Association of El Paso, 315 Texas Street.
**Pecos Federal Savings and Loan Association,' City Hall.
DISTRICT N O . 10
NEBRASKA:
Lincoln:
**Home Savings and Loan Association, 1208 N Street.
NATIONAL
HOUSING AGENCY
John B. Blandford, Jr., Administrator
FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK ADMINISTRATION
John H. Fahey, Commissioner
Federal Home Loan Bank Review
lOTflSl^ff[
Savings and loan
money orders
T h e public in New York S t a t e can
now purchase savings a n d loan money
orders from associations which are
members of the State Savings a n d
Loan Bank. Printed forms
were
recently distributed to t h e associations
under a law passed by the 1945 session
of the New York Legislature.
Although t h e orders will be cleared
through t h e Federal Reserve Bank,
each form will bear the imprint of t h e
issuing association. T h e necessary
information a b o u t each order can be
entered on duplicate stubs a t t a c h e d to
every form, one serving as t h e customer's receipt and t h e other as t h e
association's record of t h e transaction.
Fee schedules are to be determined
by t h e individual associations.
Russia turns to
prefab homes
Prefabricated houses are being used
widely in Russia to replace dwellings
destroyed in former war zones, according to t h e U. S. S. R. Embassy Bulletin.
T h e most popular model a t present is a native product, t h e Pavlov
home, although American-built prefab units are arousing considerable
interest.
Pavlov houses are being erected by
t h e hundreds in such war-devastated
areas as Stalingrad, Kiev, Smolensk
a n d Moscow. Built mainly of wood,
t h e three-room house covers an area
of a b o u t 969 square feet. Cost runs
a b o u t $5 a square foot, or approximately $5,000 per house, when t h e
value of t h e ruble is 20^. After t h e
ground was broken in one city, it took
40 men 30 hours to assemble t h e house
and make it ready for occupancy.
regular savings can be applied toward
war bond purchases a n d a constantly
increasing b a n k balance. At t h e same
time, a portion m a y be allocated to life
insurance, issued by t h e B a n k ' s life
insurance d e p a r t m e n t . For example,
regular weekly p a y m e n t s of $3 m a d e
for 10 years from age 25, would give
the saver $1000 face value of savings
bonds, $620 cash in t h e bank, a n d a
$1000 life policy during t h e period.
T h e plan is entirely flexible and
savings can be concentrated on any
one or more features. T h e life insurance policy m a y , a t t h e end of t h e
period, be continued, t u r n e d in for
cash value or changed into paid up
insurance.
Military insurance
in World W a r II
Although more t h a n half t h e men
discharged from military service express a desire to keep their National
Service Life Insurance, less t h a n 20
percent actually do so, t h e I n s t i t u t e
of Life Insurance recently reported.
Often policies are allowed to lapse
because veterans d o n ' t know w h a t
to do to retain them. T h e services,
t h e Veterans' Administration and
p r i v a t e life insurance companies are
now trying to m a k e available to
every veteran simple, understandable
directions on t h e subject.
Already
over $2,000,000,000 in d e a t h claims
have been approved for p a y m e n t to
families of deceased military personnel.
Between 1940, when National Service Life Insurance was started, and
J u l y 1, 1945, over 14,500,000 m e n a n d
women in t h e armed forces h a d b o u g h t
policies worth more t h a n $137,000,000,000.
Per capita income
rises during war
From 1940 through 1944, per capita
income in t h e United States almost
doubled, a D e p a r t m e n t of Commerce
survey of income p a y m e n t s to individuals revealed.
I n this four-year
interval such civilian income jumped
94.3 percent from $575 to $1,117.
An acceleration of t h e trend in
geographical distribution of per capita
income was noted between 1940 and
1944.
War activities and shifts in
population caused t h e per capita
income to rise more in t h e so-called
low income states t h a n in those with
high incomes.
PERCENTAGE CHANGE IN OUTSTANDING FARM- MORTGAGE
DEBT, JAN. 1, 1940-JAN. 1,1944
^M^^^^S^B9m7r
Z
-ft*
-6.0
-8>
"PERCENT
DECREASE
B8824.0 and over
^ ^ P ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ?sfij%ffi§.
"Package Savings"
plan inaugurated
A " p a c k a g e savings" plan, designed
to provide three-way protection h a s
recently been instituted by t h e Bowery
Savings B a n k of New York City.
Under this copyrighted plan, small
October 1945
^^^^^
UNITED STATES
-14.4 PERCENT
1
^^^^ll!®!
^§$if
^5a
WmmA
n 5
**^^^
\&&
12316.0-23.9
I H
8.0-15.9
W% 0.0- 7.9
INCREASE
[ M l 0 . 8 and over
Bureau of Agricultural Economics
27
TIME FOR TEAMWORK
With the lifting of all wartime controls over housing construction, the
housing industry faces the challenge of gearing its operations to meeting a
broad and urgent need without precedent in the history of this country. Serious
housing shortages exist today in practically every city in the country. In
many areas, these shortages will become more acute during coming months as
millions of veterans return to civilian life. If the housing industry will set its
target at meeting the demand for new houses on a broad front, it will open up
the path to a sustained volume of peak construction which will produce big
outlets for jobs, production and investment during the reconversion and postwar years.
The main hazard to attaining this objective is the possibility of inflationary price increases, made possible by a demand greatly in excess of the
available supply which has already caused a sharp rise in the prices of existing
houses in crowded areas.
Unless a majority of the new houses which are produced in the next
few years are within the means of average American families, there is the very
real danger of a short-lived boom in home building, followed by an abrupt
decline such as occurred in 1920 after the First World War.
W e believe that housing is potentially an industry providing opportunities for an annual investment of $6,000,000,000 to $7,000,000,000 and
providing 4,000,000 to 4,500,000 jobs. However, it must be realized [that to
attain these objectives, hundreds of thousands of homes must be built for the
great "middle market" never adequately provided with new housing in the past.
The present vast potential market for housing, which offers a major
contribution to a full employment economy in the years ahead, makes it all
the more important that a full effort be made now to gear home construction
to the requirements of long-term housfng development. A short-lived inflationary boom now, marked by excessive prices for individual houses and an
undue concentration on the luxury market, might set us back years.
This is a time for teamwork and ingenuity to offset higher costs by
increased efficiency.
John B. Blandford, Jr.
Administrator
National Housing Agency
U . S . GOVERNMENT PRINTING O F F I C E : 1 9 4 5
@FedFRASER