STATE HOUSING FINANCE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 15, 18 January 1940, Page 6

STATE HOUSING FINANCE.

'"•Jay See," for the best of all reason?, ignores my contention that to grant special privileges to a handful of State tenants is to throw a burden on to the general taxpayers, i.e., the community.

"Treasury bills'' is just another name for Government T.O.U.'s, and if money so raised is (nominally) free of interest the equivalent of the interest will be filched from the people in higher, and ever higher, costs. If "Jay See" had a competent knowledge of the history of what has been appropriately named "funny money" lie would *be more in touch with "realities.'' So long as a ruling rate for interest persists, so long will "debt-free" money lie a will-o'-the-wisp. The housing shortage in Sew Zealand is the direct outcome of Government "planning," commencing with the rent restriction* of a previous Government . Left alone, and free front monopoly interests, private enterprise would have met the demand long ago. I would like to give "Jay See" a few facts about the Government housing generally, but hesitate to ask for the necessary spare. Somo day "the history of t>tate housing in New Zealand" will be written and it will not afford pleasant reading for our present-drtv Socialists—nor for anyone else. ' ACCOUNTANT.

"Accountant" lias all the l>est of the argument with "Jay Sec"' when lie points out tliat (lie new inflationary money that is being iss-ued for the State houses is not a windfall from the heavens. To my mind the issuing of new money for this scheme is like a milkman adding water to hi-? milk and then saying he lias got so many gallons of milk for nothing. It might he said that the bank holds the titles of the.se properties as security against, the advances hut ithere another linaneial institution that will lend 10' i per cent «>n a property that eo>ts at lear-a 2"> per cent more than a private builder could produce the security for. There i~ no doubt that more money is required as a community gets larger and more wealthy. Even "Accountant" would not try to make lis believe that the amount 01 currency would do a city like Auckland when the population has .loubled and the wealth more than douMed. '•Accountant" .-ays the rent- do not pay interest, rates and sinking fund f°r depreciation on the money. All I can say is that a house framed with sap rimu has only a short life. 1 ha\e seen hundreds of State hoit-e< in the frame and (hey are trained with \v..ni i-known as ordinary building rimu. and it is more than lialf -ap. OLD AUCKLAND JJITLDKK.