NAPIER BUILDING SOCIETY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 193, 30 July 1932, Page 2

NAPIER BUILDING SOCIETY

BUSINESS OS THE PAST YEAR. THE ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meeting of the Napier Land, Building and Investment Society was held last night, when Mr J. Vigor Brown presided over a very large attendance of shareholders. The balance standing to the credit of the profit and loss account to June 3C. 1032, was £799 9s Bd, of which a sum of £7BO 13s 5d was absorbed in interest credited to investing members at the rate of 7 per cent., leaving a balance of £lB 16s 3d to be carried forward to next year’s account. The following annual report presented by Mr Brown was adopted:— ‘' Since we met last year the troublesome times of the world have been and still are with us, but brighter prospects seem to be coming slowly but surely. The world will gradually right itself with the help of the Ottawa Conference and the wonderful public men who are negotiating for rebuilding the finances of the Empire. They are working night and day to do everything that is possible to bring us back to what we were. It is no use persuading ourselves that the world will suddenly get all right. It is bound to get all right, but we are sometimes a little too anxious and expect too much too soon. If we can only be patient and help with all our might to right our own selves there will be little anxietv for us in the future AN ANXIOUS YEAH. “The society has had rather an anxious year clearing up earthquake and other troubles. We have amply provided for all possible losses, and anything that is doubtful we have written off. The Government passed legislation reducing the interest to our borrowers, and also reducing interest to our depositors. This: I quite agree with. It is a step in the right direction, and helps the poorer men to right them, selves. “Last year we wrote off £lOl4 of earthquake losses. This year wo have written off as follows; —Earthquake losses, £451 16s; borough rates, £94 19s; overdue interest, £600; insurance premiums, £92 14s Id. Making a total in the two years of £2253 9s Id. We have now cut out everything there is any doubt about, and we will still be able to pay 7 per cent, dividend, carrying forward £lB 16s 3d. “We have £24,673 6s 3d on deposit and £30,376 12s 2d of this has been n<

newed from two to five years on the terms set out in the balance sheet. We have also £4296 14s Id odd which is still current and falls due between now and next December. All these depositors have agreed to renew their deposits for two years from due date at the rate of interest suggested by the Government. We have no call money or short call money as it is sometimes called. None of our deposits will have a shorter currency than two years. Our bank overdraft will bo steadily reduced, and I hope we will soon get back to our old stride and be able next year to show the same results as we did before the earthquake. CONTINUED CONFIDENCE. “My committee have had a groat compliment paid to them by our depositors, all of whom have resumed their deposits for two years or longer. This shows the continued confidence of our members and the stability of our society, for which X sincerely thank them. We have sixty-three depositors, whose deposits average £392. We have also 116 borrowers, whose loans average £468, so it will be seen that our business is well spread about in our borrowing and lending. “We have been 44 years in existence, and until the earthquake never lost a penny. We have been very lucky in getting out of our troubles so cheap, ly and so quickly. All that we want now is the continued confidence of the public, not only in our society, but in all other companies that are trading in Hawke’s Bay. If we can keep this up we will all lie getting on as merrily as a marriage belt “I wish to thank my committee for their able and energetic help during the year. I hope that next year we will have no fresh troubles and be able to sail along with a fair breeze.” MR BROWN'S REVIEW. In moving the adoption of the annua) report and balance sheet, Mr Brown said that the society had had a troublesome and anxious time with all sorts of complications that had been caused by the earthquake. It had been necessary to pay the overdue rates of borrowers, as, if they had not been paid, there would have been a fine of 10 per cent which would have fallen on the society’s shoulders. These amounts had had to be written off. The same applied to the question of insurance, although in both instances it might be possible for the society to make recoveries, bn' he did not think that that would be possible. Last year the committee, because ot , the earthquake, had. relieved borrower!

of the necessity of paying interest tor five months, with tho object of holding them together. They had all lost a great deal by way of broken crockery and furniture, but they all set to and helped each other, and still kept their interest in their properties. He supposed that the society had gained from £lOOO to £2OOO in extra value in the properties in this way, the society only losing the interest for five months. The society had a particularly fine lot of borrowers, and they had done all they could to assist. RECENT LEGISLATION. Mr Brown then referred to the Government’s recent legislation, which required the society not to pay more than | a certain amount of interest to depositors and reduced the interest to borrowers. This, Mr Brown thought, was a very fine thing. The interest which the society had averaged since 1929 had worked out at lot per cent., and this year was the lowest that it had ever had. “We have to thank our lucky stars that wc have got it,” he said. He hoped that next year it would be possible to pay nine or perhaps ten per cent, unless, of course, there was another earthquake. Messrs J. R. Ross, T. F. Faulknor and E. Hyde, who were the retiring members of the committee, were all re-elect-ed. Mr J. W. Sandtmann was re-ap-pointed auditor. The usual honoraria were voted to the chairman and committee on the motion of Mr F. W. Melhuish, It was decided to record in the minutes of the society appreciation of the services that had been rendered by the secretary, Mr E. Nesbitt, and his staff during the past yearThe reduction of the allocation towards the relief of unemployment in Napier by £lOO has been the subject of much concern. The matter has been taken up with the Hon. Adam Hamilton (Minister of Employment) by Mr W. E. Barnard, M.P., who last Wednesday sent him a telegram requesting that the reduction be reconsidered. A subsequent reply from the Minister stated:—“lf allocation No. 5 Scheme current week is compared with allocation like week previous month, reduction of £lOO is due to decreased registration. Alloen tion forthcoming week adjusted or basis later registrations.” To this tele gram Mr Barnard has replied as fol lbws:—“Haye ascertained next week’: allocation Napier only £5Bl so appar ently no improvement on present ditfi cult position. Will you please suppl) by letter particulars of principles oi 4 alluo'.tioti to enable (solution mystery.’