2. Assessed valuations, property tax rates, adjusted tax rates-"Comparative tax rates of American cities-1944," Detroit Bureau of Governmental Research in National Municipal Review, December 1944, Volume XXXIII, No 11.

3. Number of low-rent units to be built by individual cities under program to build 500,000 additional low-rent public housing units-Graphic material in support of statement by Philip M. Klutznick at hearings on 8. 1592 General Housing Act of 1945 before the Committee on Banking and Currency, United States Senate; list of programs submitted is in section 32 of this report.

4. Total number of dwelling units-United States Bureau of the Census-16 Census "Housing," Volume II, part I.

Calculations

The situation in 1944 (or at date of latest annual report):

1. Tax loss.-Development cost of all low-rent units X adjusted tax rate=tax levy; tax levy minus payment in lieu of taxes=tax loss.

2. Assessed valuation.-Development cost of all low-rent units X city's basis of assessment (percent) =assessed valuation.

3. Total tax levy.-Assessed valuation of all real and personal property X full tax rate for all purposes total tax levy.

4.

5.

Tax loss

Total tax levy

X 100-proportion of tax loss to total tax levy (in percent). Assessed valuation of low-rent housing 100=proportion of public housing Assessed valuation of all real property

assessed valuation to real-property valuation (in percent).

7. Obtain number of dwelling units to be constructed and development cost of these units from Klutznick's report (see source 3).

8. Assessed valuation of these units as in method (2). 9. Tax levy on these units as in method (3).

10. Payment in lieu of taxes (use the following ratio): Payment in lieu of taxes on present units

Number of present units

X

Number units under proposed program (from (7) above)

11. Tax loss on these units as in method (1).

12. Tax loss on proposed number of units and tax loss on currently operating units=total tax loss if 500,000 additional units were now in operation throughout the Nation.

12a. Assessed valuation calculated the same way.

13. Calculate ratios as in (4), (5), and (6).

On the basis of 5,000,000 additional units

14. Number of dwelling units in (7) × 10=number of low-rent dwelling units that would be constructed in a program of 5,000,000 units throughout the Nation. The assumption is that future construction of low-rent public housing would be on the basis of the proposed number to be built under the 500,000 program.

15. Number of dwelling units computed in (14) plus number of units currently operating=number of dwelling units if 5,000,000 additional units were now in operation.

16. Tax loss computed in (11) × 10=tax loss on the basis of 10,000,000 units throughout the Nation.

17. Tax loss in (16) and tax loss on currently operating units=tax loss if 10,000,000 additional units were now in operation throughout the Nation. 18. Assessed valuation calculated the same way.

19. Calculate ratios as in (4), (5), and (6).

On the basis of 10,000,000 additional units

20. Use the factor 20 the same way as the factor 10 was used in making calculations on the basis of 5,000,000 additional units, and make the calculations in the same manner.

JUNE 19, 1946.

NOTE.-Copyright 1946 National Association of Home Builders of the United States.

STATEMENT OF EDWARD R. CARR, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS, WASHINGTON, D. C.-Resumed

Mr. CARR. Senator Robertson, I am going to touch on the thing that you were talking about.

We feel that the continuation of our present FHA financing with some minor adjustments from time to time, plus an agency which of necessity must be a public agency in these various communities to acquire slum areas, will allow us to do this job, plus one factor, and that is a continued high production of housing.

I would first like to dissipate perhaps the general idea that builders do not want to build low-cost housing. I do not know why there is so much propaganda to that effect. You certainly cannot take today's conditions as typical.

It is amazing to me that the building industry has been able to get up half a million units under the almost impossible conditions that we have met last year, and we are doing the very best we can this year. Nobody knows where the price level is going to end, that is a matter of speculation, maybe they are going higher, or maybe they are going lower.

In 1939, 1940, and 1941, we built 458,000, 530,000, and 619,000 units, respectively. That was an increase from 93,000 units at the peak of the depression, or the bottom of that.

The FHA figures show the average annual income of borrowers on those houses in 1936 was $2,766. In 1941 it was $2,250. That is where the FHA has been very helpful. Over 70 percent of the FHA type of borrower on new houses had annual incomes under $3,000, and 30 percent had annual incomes under $2,000.

In 1940, 50 percent, or approximately 50 percent, of the houses that were financed by FHA were valued and sold for less than $5,000, and 20 percent were down under $4,000. And we built houses right here in Washington and sold them for $3,375, very nice detached two-bedroom Cape Cod style houses.

Seantor BUCK. If you could get the material, what would it cost today?

Mr. CARR. Well, the index, and of course that is a pretty unreliable thing right now, the index is about 165 to 170 percent. That would be, taking the $4,000 house, that would be about $6,800.

In Richmond, Va., in 1945

Senator BUCK. Can you finish in 5 minutes?

Mr. CARR. Yes, sir. I will finish.

They were building houses like we show you in that little picture, semidetached houses, built for colored occupancy in Richmond, and they are renting for $30 a month.

(The letter referred to is as follows:)

NATIONAL HOUSING AGENCY,
FEDERAL HOUSING ADMINISTRATION,
Richmond 19, Va., March 25, 1947.

Mr. MARK C. BANE,

American Building,

Richmond, Va.

DEAR MARK: As promised you yesterday I am attaching hereto copy of a news release that was prepared several months ago in connection with Brookfield Gardens.

You will note that there are no square-foot areas included. However, the floor plan that I gave you yesterday is essentially the same as Brookfield and, I believe should give you all of the details you want. There is also attached hereto a photograph of one of the houses that might be helpful to you.

I appreciate your interest in this project, and if I can be of any further assistance, please do not hestitate to call on me.

Very truly yours.

DAVID W. CARTER,

State Director.

Brookfield Gardens, located in the city of Richmond, Va., is a low-cost gardentype rental project for Negroes.

The city of Richmond has long been in need of a low-cost project of this kind for its 40,000 Negro population. Predicated on this demand Allen J. Saville and the American Houses, Inc., of New York, entered into a working agreement to produce the projects.

The entire project consists of 188 two-story units of similar floor plan. Each has a living room, dining alcove, and kitchenette downstairs, and there are two bedrooms and a bath upstairs. Each unit is complete with a gas range, ice box, two gas-fired space heaters, and a gas-fired hot-water heater of 20-gallon capacity. The rental on each unit is $30 per month, which includes water and ground maintenance.

With a mortgage of $506,000 closed in 1945, Brookfield Gardens is probably the lowest-cost project of its kind in the South, the mortgage amount being only $672 a room.

Designed by Holden, McLaughlin & Associates, of New York, the project covers 20 acres of ground. All land planning was done in close cooperation with the Federal Housing Administration to provide an attractive and convenient plan. The streets are macadam with gutters and sidewalks which are maintained by the city of Richmond.

Built in a new good Negro section close in to downtown Richmond, Brookfield Gardens has adequate transportation, shopping facilities, schools, and churches.

The project has been fully occupied since its completion and has at this time a substantial waiting list.

It was financed by the First Mortgage Corp. of Richmond, and the permanent mortgage is the First & Merchants National Bank of Richmond.

Mr. CARR. Here is another job going ahead on the west coast. It is in California where they are renting for $45 and $50, furnished. (The document referred to is as follows:)

AVALON VILLAGE

You are invited to inspect this $5,000,000 project and see for yourself what private enterprise is actually doing now in furnishing veterans' housing. Action-not mere words-is our answer.

Applications will not be accepted until after July 1. Public announcement of availability will be made at that time by Avalon Village Co., the owner.

THE PRACTICAL ANSWER

One thousand furnished rental units in Avalon Village will be ready for veterans and their families to move into commencing about August 1, this year. This is the practical way a group of Altadena businessmen have answered the much discussed-but little done about-problem of housing veterans of World War II. This $5,000,000 veteran housing development, located on Avalon and Sepulveda Boulevards near Wilmington, was conceived and initiated by the First Federal Savings & Loan Association of Altadena. The project is financed by this association; is being constructed by the Western Defense Housing Co., builders; is owned and will be operated and maintained by the Avalon Village Co. Without benefit of Federal or any other kind of subsidies, this substantial rental development, privately constructed by and for veterans, is truly convincing