THE COST OF BUILDING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18040, 15 March 1922, Page 8

THE COST OF BUILDING.

FACTORS IN HIGH CHARGES. MATERIALS AND LABOUR. MANY PLANS IN ABEYANCE. PRICE CONTROL IN ENGLAND j There 13 a general opinion in the build- ' big trade that the high cost of building j is attributable to the present excessive price of building materials, although it is also contended that the cost of labour is : still on tho high side. There is no doubt, ; however, that the existing high prices are seriously retarding essential building operations, and it is argued that so long as ' they last commercial building, which must ' La done at a price that will give an eco- ' nomic return, can make little progress. ; Certain Qrms are prepared to pay a high ' price for a building which they consider i necessary for the expansion of business, i and face tho loss, but ordinary people i cannot afford to put up expensive build- i ings which rould afterwards be assessed i for rating on an inflated and fictitious , ,value. They prefer to wait, and are- | waiting until prices have fallen to a i more reasonable figure. j The wages of carpenters were recently | reduced by 3d an hour, and Mast week a , similar reduction in painters' wages waH effected, representing about lis a week, : but even so the present cost of this j' labour, compared with the rates ruling |. before the war, does not nearly approximate the difference between the cost of building t'.en and now. Following on a slight fall in cost of materials, but mainly in white lead, painters have reduced the cost of painting by about 6d per yard ; i WaJpaper, however, is still i showing little downward tendency. Tho I, builders contend that cost of materials is j the resptnsible factor, and in making that ( assertion they leave room for the presurup- | tion that they admit the. contention of ', labour that wages should not boar the : full weight of the reductions if economies ' are possible in other directions. Position o! Timber Mills. In a community such as this, where timber is the chief material used in the construction of dwellings, the cost of this commodity comes in for some attention. . First-class kauri is costing 60s per 100 ft., and the city building by-laws require ' that only first-class material shall be used ' for outside work and finishing. The j timber companies explain that they are selling on a Board of Trade list based ; on wages as fixed by the Arbitration ' Court, and until the tatter body makes 1 a reduction in wages prices cannot be j lowered. The list now m use was issued ' in January, 1921, but the prices are not ' materially different from those ruling at ' tue peak. The companies assert that 70 j per cent, of the retail price of timber ' represents the wages paid out in the process of production. There is not now an r acuto shortage of timber, as the principal ' rr.erchants have been able to build up I their stocks. The same rate of supply as £ formerly has been maintained, but the s demantf has lessened in the last few months. They agree that people are de- 1 sirons of building, but cannot got the t necessary financial assistance, finding it t now more difficult to raise money on e mortgage. j Cement, which enters but little into the c building of dwellings, was recently re- e duced by 9s a ton, making the local price j £7 8s 6d a ton, or about the level of the v 1918 prices. t

Cost ol Imported Materials.

Th« cost of imported materials also enters largely into a builder's calculations and although some lines Bhow reductions on the prices charged two and three years ago, most materials are still qnite 100 per cent, above pre-war prices. Galvanized corrugated iron, which cost £75 to £80 » ton at the peak, is now being quoted to builders at £33. Locks, which prior to the war could be had at 2s 6d, now cost 7s 6d. Cast iron porcelain baths, which could in pre-war days be bought for £6 10s, ara i now np to £13 and £14, this latter prico being £3 to £4 less than was the case 18 ' mantis ago. Sinks and basins are still 100 per cent, above pre-war values. Ranges, which are almost entirely Dominion made, are in much the same position. An idea of the position in England, ■where, it is asserted, 95 per cent, of the trading m materials for nouse construction is controlled by trusts, is interesting. One of the most powerful of these trade combinations controls the price of iron castings used in house building, such as grates, stoves, mantles, rain water pipes, Eatnß, etc By & system of deferred rebate, or pooling system, the association enforces strict conformity to the price lilt and makes it difficult for any competitor outside the association to market his j goods. Under this pooling system a mem- j ber of the assonation is penalised if he sells below the standard fixed by the association, and receives compensation if, owing to refusal to sell at a reduced price, he fails to do business. It is stated that one effect of this combination has been , to open the door to foreign competition, and iron goodß are now obtainable at 20 ppr cent, below the price fixed by tho combine. A German bath costs only £6 10s. as against £10 charged' by the combine. It is estimated that, apart from the manufacturer's extra profit, the builders' merchants who deal in castings are making lomething like 1000 per cent, over prewar profits. Painters' Requisites. It is also contended that there is a combine fixing the prices of linseed oil, putty, turpentine and varnish in, England, the price of white lead being controlled by an international group. The pre-war cost of liiifeed oil in England was 23s per cwt. in bulk, and the price in tins, frea on rail, as quoted to painters, was 33s per cwt. To-day the prime cost is the same as it was then, but the margin between that and the present selling price of 52s 4d has increased from 53 to 24s 2d. Oak vernish, composed in a large' measure of linseed oil, costing then as now about 2s 4d per gallon, has risen in price from 6s to 13s 6d per gallon. The opinion among local builders Is that the present slackness in the building trade will continue until some real reduction in the cost of construction is brought about,' when it is thought that many people, who have secured estimates or made enquiries i for new houses, but have Jjeen deterred from authorising the work owing to the high quotations, will place their orders, and thus relieve the prevailing depression and unemployment.