GOVERNMENT HOUSES

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 443, 26 May 1937, Page 4

GOVERNMENT HOUSES

RENTS TOO HIGH Opinion Of Land Agents Auckland, MUy 26; Auckland estate agents consider there is very little difference between the average rents likely to be charged for the new Government houses and those paid for private homes of a similar type at the present time, while hey agree that the figures announced by the acting-Prime Minister, Hon. P. Fiiaser, are beyond the capacity of the average working man. "I thought the Government set out to build homes for; the small wageearner, but these rents do not seem to indicate It,” said one leading es_ .eite agent “It It difficult to Imagine that anybody earning under £6 la week could rent one of these houses.” Similar views were expresssdi by other estate agents, who pointed out that the tenants of the new houses were more likely to be tmall business men, office workers and higher paid tradesmen, than the average working man. The manlager of the house renting department of a large firm of estate agents said the houses should pay the Government very well, but 'they would be beyond the capacity of the email wage-earner as repreeented by tho average working man for whom these homes were supposed to be built. We let a lot of houses to workmen in he suburbs, and the majority of the rents are well under the Government figures,” he taid’. “The average rent for a four-roomed house is 17s 6d. and for five and six-roomed houses 18s 6d and 22s 6d.”