STATE HOUSES

Grey River Argus, 1 September 1938, Page 11

STATE HOUSES

PRAISED BY REAL ESTATE INSTITUTE HEAD. CHRISTCHURCH, August 31. Praise for the excellent quality of the houses erected by the Government, was given by Mr H. T. Penrose in- his presidential address at the annual meeting of the Canterbury and Westland branch of the Real Estate Institute: of New Zealand. Mr Penrose said the Government was evi-dently-thinking of future upkeep. In; many of the designs, more window space would have been advantageous. How the scheme will affect the market in the future is hard to forecast, as that must, of necessity dependj on whether the market will ever be depressed as it was six years ago. ■ . !

HOUSE MARKET HAS HARDENED.

, Speaking, of market conditions in the 12 Mr Penrose said that the market had definitely hardened both as to price and to conditions of sale. The day of the 150 deposit was practicaly gone. One of the chief troubles at the moment was financing. There had been a percentage of properties sold for cash, and many of the sales had been of better class homes.

“Two or three years ago the majority of the sales ranged from £7OO to £1000.”. Mr Penrose said, “but to-day the average is much higher—from £9OO to £1350, with a very much higher percentage of good properties ranging from £l6OO to about £2500 Graduated land tax has had a retarding effect on city sales, and, apart from one or two big deals at the latter end of last year, there has been comparatively little movement.

LAND FOR STATE HOUSES.

WELLINGTON, August 30.

' Cabinet has approved the following purchases of land,for State houses: — Martinborough—Land in Broadway, Strasbourge, and Kitchener Streets, sufficient for eight houses. Wellington—Land in White’s lane and St. James and Wyndrum Avenues Lower Hutt, sufficient for 66 houses; land in Jubilee Road, Khandallah, sufficient for four houses.

Auckland—A single section in Seymour Street, Ellerslie; land in Oakley Avenue, Waterview, sufficient for seven houses; an area between Long drive and Challinor Road, St. Heliers, sufficient for five houses; land in Dominion Road, Duke Street, and Louvain and Cambrai Avenues, Mount Roskili; sufficient for nine houses; an area' on the Great North Road, Grey Lynn, sufficient for 18 houses; land in Media and Walker Roads, Formby and Sfia'kespeare Roads and Carrington Road, Point Chevalier, sufficient for 12 houses.