THE MORATORIUM.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCVIII, Issue 18084, 23 June 1924, Page 12

THE MORATORIUM.

TO ENT) THIS YEAR. SO.ME LOCAL OPINION'S. The Prime Minister has announced that the moratorium "ill end on j December •'!! next, and that thereafter | "hen a, mortgagee calls in his money I and the mortgagor feels that if would he a hardship if he were made, to pay, ( the hitter will have the right to appeal lo the Supreme Court, which will grant relief if it thinks fit. A local solicitor who was seen on the subject-on Saturday, said he did not think there had been any occasion foi the moratorium in Canterbury. and very Jitile, it' any occasion, for if in New Zealand, when it was first imposed. It started in 1014 and extended over the period when money was more plentiful than it had been for the previous twelve or fifteen years, and it had only been of use to the man who wanted to shelter behind it. and who would have been behind with his payments under any circumstances, r'rom 1020 to 1922 there might have been some little occasion for it, following the period of the slump which deprived the market of money which would have been available, but for flit, boom. If or a lime the money market had been starved, but during the past two yeai-.s money bad been more plentiful, l hough then. l was not as much money available lor mortgages now, as formerly, owing to the uncertainty in regard to the moratorium and tho term of its expiry. People with money fot investment were more inclined to pul it in banlc share’s. Government securities, or municipal debentures. the in lores i on which was paid promptly and without any trouble. A date had been fixed two or three times lor the expiry of the moratorium, and when tlie date arrived it had been extended eaeii time, so that people were no" nervous about investing on mortgage. And the fact that mortgagees were, now liable for land lax which was in arreau . made them still more nervous about j l Ills class of in vcsl meni . When people I invested money they wanted a security which was a security. Any man who had been holding a )o'o|K'rty under a mortgage which was protected by the moratorium could, within the lasi two years, have raised a tresli mortgage, for live years, and paid the original lender off. if iic bad exercised reasonable diligence and economy; moreover, lie could have got his new mortgage at j a cheaper rate than that, fixed in terms j of tlie moratorium. so that, if was ! really a borrower's own fault if tin* I lifting of tlie moraiorium at the end of tlie present year hurt him. No hard I ship would be involved in any case ' where the security was good. The only cases likely to bo affected by the lift ing of the moratorium wore those in which the purchasers had paid small deposits in tile first instance. and had made no effort during the ion years; that the moratorium had been in existence to reduce tlie amount of their unpaid purchase money. The spenket said he know of onlv one case in South Canterbury in which the lifting of the moratorium would come hard on a man. and it was a case of the kind which lie had iust mentioned. Tim Government had paved the wav lor the lifting of flm moratorium by advancing motley through the Advances to Set tiers Department, for the. purpose of discharging' mortgages which were subject to the moratorium. The Government 'tore still finding such moiwv, Lilt- on a more restricted basis. The lifting of the moratorium would be welcomed. as it would stabilise ihe freehold security market and enable

mortgagees to know where they were

Aiiotner solicitor said that the moratorium had not done much good in South . Canterbury, and when a. mortgagee. gave the requisite two months’ notice ot : his intention to call in his money very lew mortgagors objected. After December dl next the mortgagee woidd not require io give notice, and if the mortgagor felt aggrieved he would have the right to appeal to the Supreme Court. The state of affairs in South Canterbury was not very bad. as was evidenced by the fact that interest here was a half per cent, lower than in North Canterbury or Otago, anil one per cent, lower Ilian in the North Island. He took it. that this was owing to the tact that the securities hero were looked upon as being better than those in the other places which ho had named. The Government, had made r mistake in interfering with the ordinary rale of business when the moratorium was ininosed. and the sooner it was lifted the better. A certain number of people had their money out and wanted it in. hut most of the lenders had if out tor . investment anil did not wisli to call it in sr. long ;ts the interest was being regularly paid. t. present, lenders were looking for a bigger margin of security than formerly bceouso n was generally thought that there woo Id he a dron i" the price of land, which was very limb here, compared with land in Australia In Victoria good, sale country which would carry a ewe to the acre, ermid ho Ijrono'JH. fo>' C-> r ' ov ilM '* m Snail) AVa \c< h '"<iM ho havxht lor [f ppr nr-vo. ]'’<))■ > 1 *i 1 'lf'r ('“io L>‘!| to £l2 per acre had to be paid. ,