Roosevelt’s Housing Scheme To Counteract Business Crash

Northern Advocate, 30 November 1937, Page 7

Roosevelt’s Housing Scheme To Counteract Business Crash

(Received 10 a.m.) WASHINGTON, November 28. npHE MOST AMBITIOUS MOVE PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT HAS MADE A SO FAR TO SAVE THE UNITED STATES FROM THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE BUSINESS RECESSION WAS CONTAINED IN A MESSAGE TO CONGRESS ON THE SUBJECT OF PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION AND FINANCING OF HOU& ING.

Mr Roosevelt said the proposals constituted an important part of his programme for increasing general business activity and employment. The long-continued lag in building was a drag on all industry and trade. It presented an urgent problem, which was of common concern to industry, to Labour and to the Government. Revival must be based on a reduction of costs.

Housing must be produced at prices that could be afforded by the masses. Private enterprise and capital must bear the burden of providing the great bulk of new housing.

Easier Financiing. Continuing, the President said: “I recommend the adoption of measures to facilitate the financing of every type of housing. With that object, I suggest amendments to the National Housing Act in order, first, further to reduce financing costs, second, to extend the insurance of mortgages to types of housing inadequately provided for at present, and, third, to make funds from institutional and individual investors more easily available for financing a large scale operation. “I ask Congress to fix the mortgage insurance premium as low as half per cent, on the diminishing balance of the insured mortgage on larger construction, and quarter per cent. Where the value (Of construction does not exceed 6000 dollars.

“I also ask for legislation to raise the insurable limit to 90 per cent, in the case of loans to owner-occupants where the value of the property does not exceed 6000 dollars.

“Further, I propose measures designed to facilitate the construction of groups of houses for renting by explicitly authorising national mortgage associations to . make loans on largescale properties which are subject to special regulation by the Federal housing administration. “Pursuantly, I intend to ask the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to provide 50,000,000 dollars for capital purposes, thus laying the basis for 1,000,000,000 dollars of private funds through the sale of National Mortgage Association debentures.

Most Favourable Terms in History, “Summed up, the terms would be the most favourable eyer made generalty available in the United States for housing purposes. Large and continuous activity would be put on a practicable basis. “Action by the Government alone is not enough to ensure success. It will depend mainly upon the willingness of industry and Labour to cooperate.”