Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 21, no. 512: January 5, 1878

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Real Estate Record AND BUILDERS' GUIDE. Vol. XXI. NEW YORK, SATURDAY, JANUARY 5, 1878. No. 512. Publfs hed Weekly by '€bt %m[ ^staie Sccarb g-ssoctatton. TERMS. ONE YEAR, in advance....Sio.oo. Oommunicafcions should be addres.sed to / C. W. SAVEET, NOS. .345 AKD 347 naoADw.iY INDEX TO VOLUME XX. With this i.ssiieof The Recori> wefurniali a more copifms indf.x to its contents than we have liitlierto been in tlie habit of pre¬ paring. First—All the conveyances in Niew York City (23fl ;ind 24tli Wards excepted) which have lieen printed in this journal since the 1st day of .Inly la.st, have been carefully and ac(riirately indexed in such a inaiiner as to enulile one at a glance to And any sale of which there is a record in the ortice of the Register, between the months of July and December, both inclusive. The arrangement of the index is simple and easily compre¬ hended. Tiie name of the street or avenue is first given, and the numbers following refer to the pages of The Record on which the memoranda of the conveyance may be found. All the streets are subdivided be¬ tween certain avenues, and the avenues in their turn are subdivided in relation to the streets, as follows: 3.3d st, east of 3d av, pages 714, 869, 910. 2:3d st, bet 3d and 6th avs, page 949. 23d st, bet 6th and Sth avs, pages 559, 6:31, 679, S0f>. 33d ,st, west of Sth av, pages 69,5, 714, 949, 1010. Second—An index to all buildings, plans for the erection of which have been filed with the Superintendent, is also given. This will prove of immense benefit to builders, material men and others who are interested in aciiuiring informatittn resi)ecting any buildings erected, or in proce.ss of erection, during the past year. By referring to the street as printed in the index, the number of the page on which appears the plan of the pro.i'ected building concerning which infor¬ mation is sought will be found, and all de¬ tails in reference to the same. Third—A full list, properly pSgert, of all the subjects which have becjri rfiscirssed in the editorial columns during the year 1877 appears at the enart8 of th.e,worl4, of latest quality and in most abundant supply, are, m some senses, a necessity and, in others, a luxury But the application of the principles of journal¬ ism to the service of special callings and trades is a matter of actual practical utility-, and of real commercial value to the patrons of such journals. The Real Estate Record is an apt and fit illus¬ tration of the pith of this statement. An enterprise begun in inexperience, diffidence, and amid discouragements, has at length asserted j for itself a recognized position among the many trade journals of the city, and is now able to command not only the patronage, but the com¬ mendation and good wishes of a large and increasing list of .subscribers. ! A comparison of the condition of real estate | interests twentj' years ago and as it exists to-day, ! suggests the contrast of darkness and daylight. Then the.se important interests were totally lacking in any press exponent whatever, failing even in anj- prosier consideration from the daily papers. .4.11 transactions in real estate were covered—not exactly with a veil of secrecy, but rather of obliviou— except to those whose busi¬ ness compelled them to study oflicial records. The business wjis conducted wholly in the dark, save so far as individual operators might come together to exchange views, and communicate information of current transactions. The least informed person as to any variety or breadth of transactions was looked upon as a literal prod- igj- of research, by comparison with the dense ignorance which characterized the great ma- joritj- of dealers in real estate, in respect to daily dealings. It may perhaps be said, in explanation, that the limited volume of business then hardly called for a representative paper. It is certain, however, that the necessity of such a journal became keenly felt as soon as the dimen¬ sions of business were permanentl5- enlarged, parf.icularly in the climacteric period immediately succeeding the close of the war. Just before the establishment of this paper, a feeble and inelTectual attempt had been made to serve this great interest, but it may be truthfully said that it found no adequate or satisfactory service until the publication of The Real Estate Record, in 1S(»S. The faithful, reliable, and ac¬ curate publication of the current matters of record affecting real estate, has probably given this paper its highest value, a value, too, that will continue to attach to it for all time to come as a book of reference, truthfully mirroring every item of fact that finds ofTicial record. As our readers are aware, the first conception of this jounial was cast in an iron mold, from the gen¬ eral form of which there has since been scarcely any variation. Though our ideas of its particular function and service were crude and inchoate at the start, we have steadilj- persevez-ed in our efforts to render our records more intelUgible, accessible, and reliable as the j-ears roll by. At the present time we hold the journal up in its completeness as a model register of real estate affairs. For the future we intend to spare no effort to retain the confidence and good will of our large circle of readers; and no practical'or yaltialSle improvements that may occur to us, or Ije suggested, will be overlooked or left imtried. ft w6Ma afford us satisfaction to be able to print in full the Ust of our subscribers, in order to give the public some idea of the widespread interest which is taken in matters of real estate. It would be wholly an inadetiuate conception that limited the patronage of this paper to those directly con¬ cerned in real estate dealings. The mercantile element is largely repre.sented among our sub- stu-ibers, while the interest of banking, insurance, and other corporate institutions is abundantly testified by their liberal representation in our list. We can claim a.s subscribers almost every prominent individual in any wa3- connected with real estate interests, and the distribution of our paper extends largely among tho.se who lay lu. claim to the dignity of great operatoi-s. but are representatives of small and well managed es¬ tates. Touching the policy of our paper, past and present, we have onlj- to say that we repel with contempt the insinuation that we cater to the interests of either the bull or the bear ele¬ ment. The absurdity of such reflections is too ap¬ parent to admit of argument. The ebb and flow ofxeal estate values are determined, like the ocean tides, by influences quite remote from newspaper criticisms. In the absence of requisite financial and commercial conditions, the united iutellectnal force of all the journals in the country would fail to produce any perceptible impression on the current of real estate values. Like the winds they travel whithersoever they list. A sturdy and heroic band of speculators, willing to risk enormous capital may artificially swerve the in¬ dex of the real estate compass for awhile, but it is sure in time to readjust itself and regain its legitimate bearings. The tactics of which the terms bull and bear are typical, are inapplic¬ able and impracticable in matters of real es¬ tate. The broad distinctions that we do recognize in our special domain are simple and easily de¬ fined—to wit: the principles of Centralism and Disintegration. The advoaites of Contrali.-^m in real estate believe it is desirable for the future of this city, and its legion of inhabitiints, that property should be rapidly concentrated in as few hands as possible, and that power should be conferred upon this select body of property- holdei-s to define the prices and rents of property upon scales to suit their own interests and pur¬ poses; high prices, difficulty of negotiation and heavy mortgages being considered favorable to the promotion of these views. The advocates of Disintegration in real estate believe that' the true interests of this city, and of its inhabitant.s, lie in breaking up the titles of its property into the smallest possible fragments,' and distributing them widely among the largest humlier of owners in order that every representative member of the municipal family may be Unked to our destiny by the strong tie of land tenure. It is requisite, nay, indispenpble, that this widespread owner¬ ship should be based upon a scale of price."? reasonably and relatively low, and that it should be enjoyed subject to little or no incumbrance, with every possible facility of easy.negotiability. These two parties are tlie .representative and,; recognizable ones in real estate circles, so far as theoretical distinctions are concerned. They bi¬ sect the great natoral and tmiversal divisions of