CANTERBURY BUILDING SOCIETY.

Press, Issue XLI, 25 February 1885, Page 2

CANTERBURY BUILDING SOCIETY.

The annual general meeting of the shareholders in the Canterbury Building Society, Permanent, was held at the rooms of Mr T. B. Craig, Hereford street, last Tuesday, Feb. 10. The chair was occupied by Mr W. H. Hargreaves, and there was" a good attendance of shareholders. The annual report was taken as read, and was as fellows :— The Directors beg to submit their seventh annual report. The financial statement and balance-sheet, duly audited, are attached. The working or .the Society shows a return of a little under on the capital invested. Your Directors i consider this result satisfactory in the present state of the market. All possible con- ! tingencies have been provided for, and the finances of the Society are in a thoroughly sound position. The Directors who retire i by rotation are Messrs A. Carries, B. Sutherland, F. Graham, and James Goes, who are eligible for re-election, and are the only candidates for the vacant seat? on the Board. The dividend warrants will be payable on the 12th February. - The statement of receipts and expenditure showed as follows To' balance on hand Ist January, 10s; B shares, £2351 15s; interest, and interest prepaid, £2954 lis 2d; redemption money, £12,625 16s; entrance fees, £18 17s 6d; working expenses fees, £63 lis 7d; fines, £118 4s; transfer fees, £5 3s ; insurance, £305 17s 6d; survey fees, £48 2s 6d j ground rents, £24 18s lOd; sundry creditors, £3118s 6d; deposits, £7619 lis 7d. Total receipts, £26,16817s 2d. By balance due Bank, Ist January, 1884, £261116s 6i; B shares withdrawn, £1655 oa4d j interest on capital shares and on deposits, £2186, oe4d; advances on mortgaga and shares, £7580; entrance fees returned, £2 0s 6d ; insurance, £478 2s 6d; survey fees—paid surveyors, £4817s 6d; ground rents, £45

18s 7d; office furniture, £26; sundry i creditors, £11 6s 6d ; deposits withdrawn, i £10,320 2s Id; expenses of management, i £606 7b 9dj balantw at. Bank. <$|at De- i cember, 1834, £593 6s 7d. Total; ; aßa6,ieß i 17s 2d. s "' ' ■•••'' ' The statement of assets and liabilities ] showed the advanoes on mortgage and < shares to be £30,242 6s, and that £7611 < 9s 6d was deposited with the Society. < The Chairman ; in moving the adoption i of the report and balance sheet, said that i he thought the Society could fairly be - congratulated upon the success attend-ng i their operations during the year. They < might it was true have granted a great i many more loans than had been the case, ; but looking to the state of the times the Directors had preferred to pursue a perfectly safe policy, and only grant applications on really first olass security. The result was that the securities held by the Society were all of the very best character, and this was due to the care and prudence exercised by the Directors, a course which he felt sure—though perhaps it had resulted in not quite so large a dividend as last year—the shareholders would agree with them was the right one to take under the circumstances. iHe now moved— " That the report and balance sheet be received and adopted." Mr C. E. Bbiqos seconded the motion, which was put and carried. Mr J. T. Boss then moved—" That the reserve fund for 1884 be paid to capital shares, to all old A shares of five years' standing, and to B shares maturing." Mr F. W. Hales seconded the motion, which was carried. ", Messrs A. Carrick, B. Sutherland, F. Graham and J. Goss, the retiring Directors, were declared re-elected, there being no other nominations. The Chatbitan announced that the Directors had appointed Mr E. S. Harley as Directors* Auditor for the ensuing year. It would now be for the shareholders to elect one. ,~ • • . Mr Boss moved—" That Mr T* 8.. Craig be re-elected as Shaxehddex&Auditor for the ensuing year." , Mr C. J. MoujraroßT Beoonaeo th* motion, which was agreed M» unanimously. ** The Chaxbxaw said this Jwaa all the bußinees the Directors had to bring before the meeting. If any shareholder had any question to ask, or any motion to propose, now waa the time. In answer to Mr Boss the Chaihhan said that though the amount of dividend was not so large as last year, the business done was of a thoroughly stable character. The society could have done a very large amount of business in the advancing of money, but in the state of the money market the Directors felt that it would be better only to do a safe business. This, though it might look to be not perhaps in the interests of the investing shareholders so far as the payment of a larger dividend was concerned, was yet markedly so, because the policy of the Directors had resulted in the society obtaining only the very best class of security. With regard to the issuing of shares at, aay, £25 each, running up to, say, nine or ten years, the matter had been moated, and it had been under the consideration of the Directors. It was not yet in shape, bnt the incoming Directors would take up the matter. He > thought that some such method as this 1 would increase the business of the Society, ' and also its popularity. He desired also to i call to the attention of shareholders that it > was to their interest to bring the Society > under the notice of their friends, and point ■ out the facilities afforded by it in the way 'of granting loans. He hoped that this would bo borne in mind by the ahare--1 holders, who seemed now to look upon it 1 that, after taking up their shares their 1 interest ceased as it were. But this was ) not the case, and he wanted to see the '■■ shareholders helping the Directors in the i; way he had pointed out. i Mr LouemrAN wished to know if the | Directors had ever considered the advisablenessof making some concession with regard to the paying off of loans before the time for which they were borrowed. Under the rule as now in force, people seemed to : think that the discounting of future pay- | ments was somewhat in the nature of a -fine. The Chaikman said that the matter had : not come before the Directors, as no com- : plaint .had been made to them as to any ' hardship arising from the rule. It was not •an arbitrary rulfii he might state. He ' would point out that Mr Hales told him that the relaxation of the rule in another Society had led to a very large amount of money coming in to the Society which could not be conveniently got rid of. This they did not want, as the Society, in the in- ' terests of the shareholders, did not want a credit balance at the Bank. The directors, while wishing to make the Society _ a financial success, did not, he would desire to point out, wish to press hardly on the borrowing shareholders. Mr Loughnan was aware that the rule was merely a safeguard. The Chaibman said in all private mort- . gages the mortgagees generally required a • six months' fine, v not more, according to the time the mortgage had to run. Mr > Hales informed him, however, that in no ' case had the rule been put in full force by ' the directors. A vote of thanks to the Chairman closed 1 the meeting. ,