The Weekly Gazette

THESE F. H. A. LOANS
By Philip B. White
Manager Hartford Better Housing Program

A contractor dropped into the office the other day to ask about the procedure involved in applying for a Modernizing Loan. He had the contract to do a job for $600, but the property owner wanted to borrow the money. He had taken the statement, and he came to me simply to ask if it was properly filled out, which it was. The application was taken to the bank, which approved the loan. The note was taken to the property owner, who signed it, and the work is being done.

The point which I wish to make is simply this: there is no involved process in getting one of these loans. Assuming that the property owner has an income equal to five times the payments on the loan, and his or her credit is good, his or her ability to get the loan is unquestioned.

These are character loans, requiring no endorsers and no collateral. A good many more people would apply for these loans if they could understand how easy they are to get. But too many are hesitant about making their applications.

Bankers are not ogres, and, while the Federal Government guarantees 20% of their total loans to the banks we are doing business with our local bankers. These men are outstanding citizens of our communities, our friends, and we can easily talk to them. If we do not wish to have our contractor make arrangements for our loan, it is quite fitting that we go to the bank in person. As a matter of fact the banker prefers to see and talk to the property owner, and we often get more consideration than otherwise.

When a property owner has some doubt about his or her credit a representative of the Hartford Better Housing Program will be glad to call upon him or her. This call is made, not to sell an idea that should not be sold, not to persuade anybody against his own best good, but to be of genuine assistance wherever possible. If a loan is doubtful, or if application seems inadvisable, our representative is perfectly frank in saying so. If there is anyway that he can be of assistance, however, he will be glad to spend whatever time is necessary.

Some people seem to feel that all the Federal Housing Administration activity is unnecessary and undesirable. They feel, without knowing anything about it, that the whole thing is designed to force people to borrow and spend money against their will. Nothing could be further from the truth. The whole movement was designed to give sound construction credit, and to help the property owner buy required construction service. If a good enough service job is done it is going to be possible to sell billions of dollars worth of construction, putting the building industry back to work, and making certain prosperity for everybody.