STATE ADVANCES.

Waipa Post, Volume XXIV, Issue 1415, 13 October 1923, Page 5

STATE ADVANCES.

£4,000,000 LOANED IN SIX MONTHS OVER ONE HUNDRED APPLICANTS A DAY. (By Telegraph. Press Association.) v WELLINGTON, Friday. “The work which the State Advances Office is called on to do at present is unprecedented, and it is quite impossible to cope with the applications received as quickly as desired by those applying for loans, even though the utmost expedition is shown,” said the Acting-Finance Minister yesterday. “The staff has been substantially increased to overtake the extra business, but over 100 applications for loans are received on the average every day. Complaints about delay can hardly be well founded when it is stated that payments to borrowers are being made out at an average rate of £119,000 per week, and this amount tends to increase. A few further figures, said the Minister, would indicate the immense task with which the Department was faced. During the last two months over 6000 applications had been received, and the needs of the applicants had exceeded £7,000,000. The loans .authorised for the last six months amounted to £4,026,607, while the amount actually paid over amounted to almost £2,500,000. With_ reference to loans for the same period for housing purposes over £500,000 had been paid for the purpose of erecting homes, while over £600,000 had been advanced for the purchase of houses already erected. In addition the sum of £34,200 had been advanced to local bodies for the purpose of erecting workers’ dwellings. For the six months ended September 30th the large sum of about £BOO,OOO had been paid over for the purpose of repaying existing mortgages. There were also other advances made on chattel securities, etc.