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The Daily News. MONDAY, APRIL 3, 1922. CHEAPER HOMES.

The housing question has, for a long time past, been a matter to which serious consideration has been given by Governmental authorities in Britain and the Dominion, also by economists and the people themselves. Considerable interest attaches to a recent cable from London, stating that arresting facts concerning housing costs are revealed by the secretary to the Parliamentary Housing Group (Sir K. Wood), who states that since the Government is not in the market for an unlimited number of houses, the cost per house has been reduced by half, and giving an instance of a recent tender of £3BB for a three-roomed dwelling, the price for which, a year ago, was £l2OO, and it is expected that tenders will be still lower 1 ‘when building becomes an economic proposition for the private builder.” Such a statement comes as a great surprise to the people of New Zealand, who still have to pay abnormal prices for the erection of houses. The two main factors that have operated in reducing the cost of dwellings in the Homeland are the lowering of wages consequent on the supply of labor far exceeding the demand, and a general reduction in the price of all building materials. Needless to say that if satisfactory threeroomed houses could be erected in the Dominion for £4OO, or even £650, the shortage of dwellings would be overcome in a short time. a boon cannot be expected, only is the material much dearer here than in Britain, but the standard of wages is higher. At the same time the requisite materials for constructing houses should be much cheaper here than is the case at present. A lowering of the freight on such goodsas have to be imported is one of the urgent requirements, while keener competition by the Dominion importers and distributors would naturally tend to reduce prime costs to the consumers. No doubt this will eventuate in the near future. have already been reduced, w Ist the output of the workmen has greatly increased, in some cases to the profit of the builders, and in others to the benefit of the public. At the same time if first-class and expeditious workmanship is to be encouraged the wages should be on a scale that will give satisfactory results. It is false economy to stimulate “jerry-building,” especially when people are being induced to become the owners of their own homes, a factor that has a great influence for goad in the cause of industrial peace and stability. The price of bricks in New Zealand has been reduced, in some quarters almost below the cost of production. There is room for a considerable reduction in the cost of cement and cartage. The saWmillers have recently reduced the price of building timber by 2s per hundred feet, but that is a mere bagatelle. The secretary of the Sawmillers’ Federation took advantage of the opportunity to state that, in his opinion, it would be futile to expect timber prices: to remain at even their present 1 value, as the more timber used the greater would its scarcity become and the more expensive would be its acquisition and delivery. There are good grounds for belief that the recent reduction was not the outcome of any sympathy of the sawmillers for the public, but resulted from the importation of a quantity *of Oregon, and they fixed thg amount of the reduction so as to bring the home-grown timber just a little below the cost of the imported. It has for a considerable time past been strongly urged that the duty on imported Oregon should be eliminated. That it has not is a matter for which the Government can be justly blamed, especially in view of the admittedly rapid manner in which the New Zealand timber resources are vanishing. Why. this omission of a manifest duty has been persistently ignored is a matter on which opinions may differ, but there is no question that the time has arrived when the duty should be taken off, and the sooner this is done the better it will be for the public of the Dominion, though the timber ring may not regard such a step with favor.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19220403.2.16

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1922, Page 4

Word count
Tapeke kupu
705

The Daily News. MONDAY, APRIL 3, 1922. CHEAPER HOMES. Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1922, Page 4

The Daily News. MONDAY, APRIL 3, 1922. CHEAPER HOMES. Taranaki Daily News, 3 April 1922, Page 4

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