STATE HOUSES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 22 April 1938, Page 8

STATE HOUSES

RENTALS IN MASTERTON. (To the Editor.) Sir,—l desire through your columns to receive enlightenment regarding the rents for the State houses in Masterton. It has been stated that the occupants of these houses will receive a surprise when they pay their rents next time. Apparently an error has been made in computing the amounts paid, thus each tenant will require to pay an additional 2s 6d per week. At the official opening the member for Masterton, Mr Robertson, referred to the amounts paid for certain of the houses—namely, 23s 3d for a fourroomed house and 25s 3d for a fiveroomed house, that is with the rebate off for prompt payment. Now, the tenants are faced with paying 25s 9d and 27s 9d respectively with the rebates off. I desire to ask through these columns why the amounts have been increased to such an extent and also if it true that the tenants are required to pay the amount that has been undercharged from the time of taking possession.

Perhaps some more able pen thar. mine will take this up, and while not criticising the present Government, it seems to the average person that the system needs overhauling if these houses have been occupied for approximately two months and the error just discovered. I am, etc, WORKING MAN. Masterton, April 20.

According to inquiries made regarding the subject of the complaint contained in the above letter it was ascertained that there is no question of the rents being raised by the Government. In the signing up of the tenancy agreement, through an error in calculation for which the State Advances Corporation was not responsible, the rents were wrongly computed in the first place by a local agent. The rents for the dwellings are fixed by the State Advances Corporation and it appears that the correct rental was not charged when the tenancy agreements were signed up. The error was due to a misinterpretation of the gross and net rentals chargeable in each case.

Mr Robertson, when speaking at the opening ceremony, said that the rentals of four houses in High Street ranged from £1 3s 3d to £1 5s 3d.