SAVINGS TO PURCHASERS

Evening Star, Issue 25173, 12 May 1944, Page 2

SAVINGS TO PURCHASERS

PROPERTY PRICES MARKED DOWN EFFECT OF LAND SALES ACT Purchasers of property in Otago have been saved an expenditure of £9,103 2s 7d since the Servicemen's Settlement and Land Sales Act came into force. This amount represents reductions made by the Otago Land Sales Committee in the prices of properties in transactions coming before it since the inception of the committee until the end of April. Altogether, reductions in the consideration have been made by the committee in 125 cases. More than 1,300 applications have come before the committee, and the above figures suggest that reductions have, been made in almost 10 per cent, of the cases. The principal reductions have been made in urban property. A total of 121 such applications have been marked down by the committee to a total extent of £6,796 10s. Four applications for transfers of farming property have heeif reduced by a total of £1,306 12s 7d. During April reductions totalling £1,512 10s were made in 25 urban property applications and £236 on two farm land applications. It is considered that these returns give a fair indication of the effects of the operations of the Act, but that tho principal effect is in the stabilisation of values. Parties negotiating deals now give consideration to the probable values which will be placed on properties by the committee and prices are fixed accordingly. In many cases, when the Crown takes exception to the price at which a sale has been made, negotiations are entered into and the prices adjusted by consent.