LAND FINANCE

Evening Star, Issue 20468, 26 April 1930, Page 22

LAND FINANCE

AN IMPORTANT EXTENSION NO CONFLICT WITH STATE ADVANCES —_ V [Special to the ‘ Star.’] WELLINGTON. April 24. The statement by Hon. E. A. Ransom at Stratford this week regarding the new feature of finance improvements on undeveloped Crown lands has aroused a good deal of interest, and the Minister informed your correspondent that one question raised is the ;possibility of competition against existing facilities of the State Advance.? Department. “ The two methods,” explained the Minister, “do not conflict. The scheme docs not contemplate making advances in respect to improvements already carried out, but it is intended to encourage tho bringing into productivity of undeveloped _ laud. Under the amended legislation of, last session, introduced by tho Minister of Lands, any Crown tenant who has just selected entirely unimproved Crown or settlement land, or any Crown tenant who has still such an area of undeveloped land in his holding as can (in the opinion of the Land Development Board) be classed as ‘ undeveloped land,’ may be granted an advance out of tho land for settlement fund. These advances are to be for improvements to bo effected, such as fencing, breaking in land, buildings, drainage, etc., and shall be 90 per cent, of the_ estimated cost, bub not exceed £1,250 in all, and will be payable by progress payments as tho improvements are carried out.” “Obviously,” added tho Minister, “ tho State Advances office could not make advances in such cases, as it requires a security to be in existence for its loan, but the Lands Development Board does not require to have permanent improvements effected before it will authorise an advance, as it only lends for tho purpose of encouraging entirely new making of improvements. Though the system is apparently not as well known as it deserves, seeing that it strikes an entirely new departure in the encouragement of land utilisation, tho board has already granted some advances on'tho basis ) have mentioned, and it lias taken tho lino that the amounts aro secured bv mortgage which will have absolute priority over, all other mortgages. It may, however, stand behind a Stato Advances mortgage, or a mortgage to' tho Crown. When dealing with an ap plication in respect to partiallydeveloped sections, tho board would consider whether any such application did not more fittingly come under tho province of the Stato Advances office, so that the new scheme in its operation does not conflict with that valuable organisation, but extends tho scope of tho Government’s capacity to help settlers in a very effective way.”