Show 1 home Buil building dirig resumed but it will be a year or more before most people cdan expect their dream house material shortages delay construction on oil any large lame 70 scale by W WADSWORTH II WOOD government restrictions on building of private houses ends october 15 this comes as heartening news to the 12 million families who are said to be ready and anxious to build new homes now these people are wondering should we sell our present home or give up our lease in the hope of building right away what plans can we safely and confidently fi make right now this question raises several other ones which may be summarized thus 1 what will building COSTS be in comparison with those of prewar years 2 will conventional materials such as lumber brick etc be of poorer quality than prewar 3 what are the new and dif ferent features and materials so widely discussed for coming homes are those miracles in terms of revolutionary heating he atine streamlined kitchens and pushbutton laundries yet available here is the result of serious thinking first on the subject of costs while the gover government ament uno unofficially officially estimates that home building costs ats have increased one third requiring one thus to pay for a house that could be built fo for r before the war these costs are really apt to run somewhat higher it may take to build that former home this is partly because labor costs are steadily rising and 73 per cent of the total building costs are directly or indirectly labor costs residents in some sections of the country such as in the south may confidently expect lower prices due to the fact that the less severe climates permit the elimination of basements sub floors etc lets less expensive insulation also less expensive ive central heating plants prove adequate recent wide and authoritative studies such as the two year survey conducted by small homes guide reveal very pointedly why this fact is so important they show that per cent cant of families now planning to build expect to spend from to another large percentage niage per cent plan to build in the to class while only about 6 per cent are planning to build in the and better class if these families are to get full value for their money the home 4 V T 10 1 1 4 stone and wood combine to make this attractive house the built in garage is one of its most appealing features contractors estimate it could be constructed for about which is within the range about one third of home builders are willing to pay low the trend towards saving expensive site labor costs while the home building restrictions are being lifted as of october 15 the announcement carries with it a six point program that involves several directives aimed at correcting the present situation these will seek to hasten production of scarce building materials will strengthen inventory controls to prevent hoarding will expand OPA price control of building materials to prevent ent inflationary pressure control mortgage practices facilitate action b by y industry groups and widely adai advise se on home values in the directive I 1 great stress is put apon upon the rapid expansion of the home building industry as the greatest single added source of jobs in our entire economy and the statement is made that we also know that the present housing shortage is bound to continue for some time and that there may be pressure to increase the price of new homes in response to an active demand in the light of these facts thousands will be asking such questions as this dI 1 renew my present lease which expires in six months or try to build a new home right away wise advice would appear to be this renew for one year A year and a half is not too much time for thoughtful planning and careful working out of your fam ilys requirements from site selection to the details of built in storage facilities there are countless houses hat h a t could have been good houses lf if a tew few extra months had been used for planning a flurry of questions always centers around new for example will air conditioning be cheaper than before the war well assuming that you refer to summer cooling combined with air filtration de humidifying and circulation the answer is is yes several mass production manufacturers are bringing out new efficient units that can be added later to any forced warm air heating system others asks ask win will the new kitchen devices cost less or more than before the war ot of course this refers to dishwasher garbage disposal unit range refrigerator the latter two will cost a little more but will be more efficient alert makers are planning to bring costs down by combining units such as one which will wash both clothes and dishes by changing bowls and substituting a rubber covered wire dish rack for the agitator A modern bathroom is a must in in nearly planning the important new development in ba bathroom th ideas involves separating the different fixtures to eliminate early morning congestion most favored arrangement includes separate shower stall an extra lavatory and medicine cabinet the new fixture designs are more beautiful and have lots of added conveniences kitchens have been brought into focus with the modern dreams too many manufacturers are offering beautiful and complete package kitchens that include an amazing number of new items of convenience and advanced automatic labor sav ing equipment the gripes or pet hates concerning houses are going to be largely eliminated through better planning there will be plenty of closet space for instance the trend is to larger rooms spread out on one floor with larger windows and provision vision for more outdoor living colors 0 s will be bright and cheerful and details of decoration will strike a smart peacetime motif how about au all the promised postwar home gadgets you may be asking well you can look for new refrigerators with deepfreeze deep freeze compartments part ments new developments in automatic dishwashers and washing machines ultra efficient vacuum cleaners vastly improved appliances ready early next year will postwar developments completely eliminate housekeeping drudgery the answer is almost for example the precipe tron takes dust out of the air electrically tri cally y most kitchen chores such as di dishwashing hw ashing will be reduced to a minimum by automatic controls heating and cooling will be fully automatic new developments in plastic wall and floor finishes new rugs and draperies should help in adding at least three hours more daily freedom to the clock of most housewives it is indeed a great new streamlined peacetime era which we are about to enter |