ADVANCES TO SETTLERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11716, 26 July 1901, Page 4 (Supplement)

ADVANCES TO SETTLERS.

THE SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT. ; - Wellington, Friday. The Government Advances to Settlers' Extension Bill is to give the Government power to raise, for the purpose of advances to settlers, an additional ■ loan of £2,000,000, of which * not more than £1,000,000 must be borrowed in any financial year. ■ . . ; . ■i Mr. John McGowan, Superintendent of the Advances to Settlers Office, reports that 4 the transactions of the sixth year of the existence of the office have not been of such • a nature as to call for any particular comment. The instalments of interest and "': principal to March 31 1900, have been collected in full, no sum remaining outstanding on March 31, 1901. The Department has no securities on its hands. The inspection of securities by the district valuers :• has been of advantage to the office in enabling • attention to be drawn to any property which * might from any cause have gone back in value, or •■ is not being well looked after. The Board had up to March 31, 1901, authorised 9931 advances amounting to £3,244,900. The total amount asked for by the 9931 applicants (granted in full and partially) was £3,691,005; 1230 applicants declined the grants offered them amounting to £565,380. So that the net advances authorised to March 31, 1901, numbered 8701, and amounted to £2,679,520. The ; s securities for the net authorised advances were valued at £5,859,039, and these are in many instances being enhanced by the expenditure .in ; improvements of part of the money borrowed, and the liability reduced by the periodical repayments of principal in the case of instalment loans. The number of applications received to March : 31, 1901. was 12,999 for an aggregate amount . of £4,540,828. .The manner in which instalments continue to be met by mortgagors is highly, satisfactory, and has in no small de- * gree contributed to the result obtained on the year's, operations. • The 1 per cent, sinking fund now in the hands of the Public Trustee amounts to £70,839; £17,839, the cash balance at credit of management account on. March; 31, 1901, was paid to the Public Trustee to the credit of the assurance fund, as 'provided by section 53 of the Act. s The balance, including interest to March 31, 1901, at credit of the account, now amounts 'to £20,127. From the tables attached to ■ the report it appears that the Wellington district v . has , secured the biggest share, , Otago and Southland being a good . second. , Auckland is third on the list, and then comes, Taranaki. Canterbury " has received only a modest '£218,000,' only.about a fourth of what Wellington has obtained. The amounts applied for, and, : the amounts advanced in the different provincial' districts are as follows : — .„ Amount Amount of ■ . Applied Advances for. Authorised. (Auckland ; ... £531,716 £508,793 Taranaki ... 563,802 497,105 ' HawkeY Bay ... 223,410 199,270 •■: iv* Wellington ... 989,107 869,190 •Marlborough, ... ' 109,727 99,755 Nelson ... "... 51,380 . ; 45,330 : Westland ... ... 28,845 ' 25,435 Canterbury . ... '252,787 . 218,900 Otago and Southi land ... ... 890,331 '781,114