Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

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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.