Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

The Record and guide: v. 38, no. 973: November 6, 1886

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November 6, 1886 The Record and Guide. 1361 THE RECORD AND GUIDE, Published every Saturday. 191 Broad^^^srav, IST. "IT- Our Telephone CaU is .... . JOHN 370. TERMS: ONE ¥EAR, in advance, SIX DOLLARS. Communicatious should be addressed to C. W. SWEET, 191 Broadway. J. T. LINDSEY, Business Manager. Vol. XXXVIII. NOVEMBER 6, 1886. No. 973. Silver continues to advance in price on the London market. This means that values are passing oufc of gold and into- commodi¬ ties. The elections have interfered somewhat with business throughout the country, and then the season has been so mild as to interfere wifch the free purchase of winter goods. The bulls keep control of the stock markefc. Securities are firmly held, in view of the large railway receipts and the probable early resumption of dividends by Western Union, Lake Shore, Michigan Central & Canada Southern. The interest in real estate keeps up, and dealers reporfc an excellent market. Everyone who understands the situation believes that next spring will see better business and higher prices than ever before in the history of the city. The result of ihe election throughout the country has been very mixed. The Prohibition vote did not seem to be of much account, while the Labor vote was a very important factor in the State contests. The free traders were roughly handled by the voters out West, while the tariff reformers proved to be quifce popular in the New England States. The Republicans gained in the South, while on the whole fche Democrats have lost so much ground that they have barely retained control of the " House." It is clear that the political parties of the country are in process of disintegration and recon¬ struction. President Cleveland, while popular with the best elements of his party, does nofc seem to have entirely satisfied the rank and file. A proposition has been made for the Real Estate Exchange to go into the newspaper business, which we are sorry to hear some of the directors are countenancing. A printing concern wants the indorsement of the Exchange for a publication in return for the free printing of the bids and calls which now cosfcs a small sum of money. It would not look well for a rich corporation to be under any obligation to private persons for necessary work, and then it is no part of the business of the Exchange to invest money or give its countenance to newspaper enterprises. The matter has gone so far that one of the directors proposed, if the enterprise be undertaken, that a committee be appointed to see thafc nothing objectionable appears in the proposed journal. Ifc is hardly to be expected that the stockholders will sanction the issue of an organ which may involve editorial supervision as well as money outlay. None of our city exchanges have seen fit to establish journals of any kmd. They all issue price lists and the Produce Exchange keeps an official statistician; but while there are swarms of pajjers furnishing the news and gossip of the markets, none of them are in anyway countenanced by the exchanges, the interesfc of whose members they are supposed to subserve. Ifc is understood that this newspaper scheme originated from an agent who in time past has favored The Record and Guide with a great many communications. We published what would have cost an ordinary adverfciser afc least a thousand dollars, but finally had tc call a halt, as our space was wanted for more legitimate purposes. If this dealer wishes to see himself in print he is at liberty to start a new paper, but the directors of the Exchange will be exceeding their powers if they in any way countenance a pri¬ vate enterprise of this kind. The daily papers devote a great deal of attention to real estate, and The Record and Guide occupies the field fully. A new paper simply means a swarm of advertising agents to worry real estate men and a useless expenditure of money and effort on the part of the promoters. A paper like The Record and Guide costs a great deal of money to get up—very much more than any other trade paper in the country. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent in trying to start rival papers, but so far they have all proved dismal failures. The Eeal Estate Exchange owes its existence more to The Record and Guide than to any other one agency. After advo¬ cating such an institution for over two years, and no one taking any action in the matter, the proprietor of this publication called a meeting at his office, No. 191 Broadway. Of the original committee appointed at that first meeting, Messrs. Cammann, Scott, Bellamy, Cruikshank, Harnett, Freedman and Croly are now directors. Messrs. Ludlow and Honig, now dead, were also on the original commifctee aud were subsequently directors. If there was any paper recognized officially it ought to be The Record and Guide, which publishes more matfcer of interest to the members of the Exchange than any journal in existence, but we never asked for nor expected such recognition in any official way. We demand, however, as a matter of simple justice, that the institution we did so much to bring into exisfcence shall keep out of the newspaper business altogether, as being a matter with which the directors of the Exchange have properly nothing to do. The New Buildings and Conveyances for a Year. The great building movement which still continues in New York and vicinity, really commenced in the fall of 1885. The May and June of that year showed an actual falling off in real estate tran¬ sactions, compared with the same monfchs of the previous year. Rut the revival of business during the midsummer of 1885 first made itself manifest in the stock market. Then an improvement was noticed in our manufacturing industries'and in trade generally, and when September arrived the purchases of real estate and the plans for new buildings showed a decided increase. By October the improvement in real estate circles became very marked, and it has continued up to this time. Usually we wait until the end of the year before giving annual statistics, but as the decided improvement first showed itself in September, 1885, it seems best to give the totals for the year ending October 31st, 1886. Here are the figures for the year compared with two previous years, also for October compared with two previous Octobers: BUILDINGS PROJECTED. 1S84. Jan. to Oct., inc. Total No. of plans filed................... 1,479 Total No. of buildings projected.......... 2,476 Estimatedcost......................... $37,969,358 No. soutli of 14th st..................... 2S0 Cost...................................$6,721,870 No. bet 14th and 59tli sts................. 438 'Cost.................................$10,004,747 No. bet 59th and 125th sts, east of Sth av.. 661 Cost...................................$11,330,220 No. bet 59th and 125th sts, west of Sth av. 265 Cost..................................$5,4.14,290 No. bet 110th and 125th sts, Sth and Sth avs 45 Cost.............................. $548,500 No. north of 125th st..................... 248 Cost..................................$2,453,630 No. 23d and 24th Wards.................. 539 Cost..................................$1,383,536 Total No. of buildings projected____ Estimated cost..................... No. south of 14th st................ Cost.............................. No. bet I4th and 59th sts................ Cost.............................. No. bet 59th and 125th sts, east of Sth av.. Cost............................. No. bet 59th and 125th sts, west of Sth av.. Cos"-................................. No. bet 110th and 125th sts, 5th and Sth avs. Cost................................ No. north of 125th st..................... Cost............................. No. S3d and 24th Wards................... Cost................................ 1884. October. 202 $>,345.9nj 12 $130,4:5 $512,450 h?, $707 900 29 $601,000 18 $96,405 (15 ■ $174,810 1885. .Tan. to Oct., inc. 1,589 2,874 $39,917,626 2S9 $6,625,075 436 $7,609,760 591 $8,700,475 574 $8,947,480 102 $1,714,000 374 $3,589,418 .509 $1,722,391 1R85. October. 299 $3,394,005 20 $iMC,830 26 $337,400 67 $808,2L0 79 $1,174,7.50 16 $180,000 27 $333,015 64 $198,900 No. Jan to Sepfc. incl. 2,274 October.......... 2J2 2,476 November....... 163 December........ 173 -1884.------------, Cost. $35,623,398 2,345,99J $37,969,388 2,119,685 2,126.350 No. 2,575 299 2,8 r4 233 263 -1885.-----------, Cost. $36,523,561 3,394,065 $39,917,6^6 2.986,205 3,011,415 No. 3,419 285 1880. .Jan. to Oct., inc. 1,863 3,704 $53,119,068 383 $8,628,580 434 $9,114,1.')0 $11,110,015 892 $14,027,0uO 197 $2,774,2.50 453 $5,356,730 598 $2,082,386 1886. October. 285 $3,037,5 0 25 $430,7.W •dO $349,525 54 $804,315 55 $1,050,0(,'0 9 $129,000 50 $659,600 06 $214,-3:^0 -1886.-----------, Cost. $49,481,558 3,637,510 3,704 $53,119,068 Total........... 2,812 $42,215,123 3,370 $45,915,246 KINGS COUNTY PROJECTED BUILDINGS. -1885- -1885- ToUl No. of No. of Total No. of No. of No. brick frame No. brick frame 1885. 1886. b'gs. b'gs. b'gs. b'gs. b'gs. b'gs. Cost. Cost. Jan. 183 90 93 266 lu6 160 $784,710 $1,10.5,310 Feb. 206 78 12S 228 113 115 998.968 844,685 Mar. 374 230 144 424 278 146 1,966.962 2,274,480 Apr. 470 304 166 411 289 132 2,547.846 2,395,216 May 429 215 214 250 142 107 2,213,043 1.312,196 June 368 187 181 299 160 1.39 2,0.55,493 1,,395.5.30 July 274 149 125 288 194 94 1,633,288 1,666,647 Aug. 376 208 168 415 193 222 1,745,420 1,9.53..575 Sept. 319 370 149 401 149 252 1,.509,540 2,173,983 Oct. 301 ISO 151 483 194 288 1,418,667 1,78^,120 Total 3,3J0 1,781 1,519 3,464 1,818 1,645 $16,973,937 $16,9U3,7't2 It will be seen from the above that there were planned 3,704 build¬ ings, costing $53,119,068, against 2,874 buildings last year, costing atrifle less than $40,000,000. The business of 1884 was still smaller. The analysis of the numbers and costs of buildings erected in differ¬ ent parts of the city will greatly interest all those who deal in or own real estate. The greatest improvement is in the region west of the Park; next in importance"comes the district just north of it. The October of this year does not much exceed the October of last year, for the building movement has slackened off somewhat, due to the plumbers' strike and other causes. The above table is well worth careful study by those who fchink of purchasing, for it must be borne in mind that the best and most profitable dealings are on the line of immediate improvement.