Vol. CII.
R E A L E S TAT E
mm
AND
B UILDERS
NEW YORG, NOVEMBER 9, 1918.
No. 19
Building Commitments for 1918 Show Increase
Figures of the Dodge Company Indicate a Gain in the Total
Amount Placed for New Construetion
ALTHOUGH the impression is qttite general that
the past year has been one of extreme dullness
for the building interests of the country and that
especialh' during the past month have building oppor-
tunities fallen off through the drastic action of the War
Industries Board in curtaiHng the erection of new
structures that are non-essential to the military plans
of the Government, the total amount of money expended
for building and engineering projects throughout the
country for the íĩrst ten months of 1918 exceeds the
total commitments for any similar period during the
past nine years of record. A study of the table of com-
parative statistics that is compiled each month by the
F. W. Dodge Company, which shows the totals of the
contracts awarded from January 1 to November 1 for
the past nine years indicates that the fĩgures for 1918
overtop the record total of 1917 by $68,504,000, and all
previous years by a considerably greater amount.
The totals given in the table of statistics are for the
construction of building and engineering projects in the
States north of the Ohio and east of the Missouri
Rivers and include all of New England, New York, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, District of
Columbia, Virginia, Ohio, West Virginia, Illinois, In-
diana, lowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, North
and South Dakota, and portions of Missouri and eastern
Kansas.
For the first ten months of the current year the total
of the contracts awarded for building and engineering
operations in the territory included in the list amounted
to $1,501,596,000. Of this amount 32 2/5 per cent. was
for direct Federal account and a large part of the bal-
ance was for structures of an industrial character that
were required to produce war munitions and supplies
for the Government. The 1918 total is greater than
that for any previous year and is only approached by
that of 1917 when the fîgures reached the sum of $1,-
433,092,000 for the first ten months of that year. Ac-
cording to the table only in one year prior to 1917
has the total for the ten-month period reached
$1,000,000,000.
Figures for the past nine years, from January 1 to
November 1, are as follows:
Contracts awarded, 1918..................$1,501,596,000
1917.................. 1,433,092,000
1916.................. 1,121,616,397
1915.................. 769,173,000
1914.................. 632.462,200
1913.................. 743,758,000
1912.................. 74.3,331,500
1911.................. 667,433,813
1910.................. 694,007,066
In what is usually considered as the local territory,
including New York State and northern New Jersey,
north' of Trenton, thc total for first ten months of
1918 shows a considerable falling off from the figures
of last year which was the highcst of record. The
gross amount committed for building and engineering
construction for the current year was $237,689,000,
which, when compared with the total for the same
period of 1917, shows a decrease of $48,587,000. The
year 1917 was the banner period for the total amount
of money expended for building purposes and the cur-
rent year receives second place. Of the total contracts
awarded in the local territory for the first ten months
of 1918 35 1/3 per cent. was for direct Government ac-
count and for the construction of cantonment additions,
hospitals, warehouses and other structures for the army
and navy.
The figures for the first ten months for the past nine
years in the local territory are as follows:
Contracts awarded, 1918.
.$237.689,000
1917.................... 286,276,000
1916.................... 225,106,500
1915.................... 137,108,500
1914.................... 112,360,500
1913.................... 223,782,000
1912.................... 206,392,500
1911.................... 200.027.500
1910.................... 205,844,000
Probably no territory among those listed shows a
greater percentage of increase for the current year than
that including the cities of Philadelphia, Baltimore and
Washington. In this territory the total for the first
ten months reached $374,631,000 or $184,090,000 in ex-
cess of the total of $190,541,000 for the same period one
year ago, or a gain of nearly 100 per cent. The full ter-
ritory involves eastern Pennsylvania, southern New
Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia and
Virginia. One of the extremely significant facts in con-
nection with the high total for this section of the coun-
try is that approximately 45 1/3 per cent. of the whole
amount represents Federal commitments for army and
navy construction and equipment. There is probably
no one section of the country that includes such a large
percentage of purely Government work within its
boundaries.
Figures for the first ten months of the past nine years
in the territory contiguous to Philadelphia, Baltimore
and Washington are as follows:
Contracts awarded, 1918....................$374,631,000
1917.................... 190,541,000
1916.................... 136,780,000
1915.................... 81.179,000
1914.................... 77,715,000
1913.................... 77,012,000
1912.................... 122,424,000
1911.................... 84,666,000
1910.................... 87,161,000
As indicated by the table of statistics the current year
shows a distinct falling off in the New England district
for the present year. For the first ten months the total
commitments for building and engineering projects
amounts to $136,267,000, a decrease of .$47,485,000 from
the total of $183,267,000 f.jr the same period of 1917.
Of thc cxpenditures for building operations in the New
England district for the currcnt year about 29 per ccnt.
was for Federal construction.
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