building operations; the building loan associations, although stimulating the production of small homes in many districts, did not use their financial power to influence an improvement in housing technique and architecture, nor did they promote large-scale methods of production; and, in consequence, the economy of large-scale production of building materials was somewhat nullified.
Despite its grave defects, however, this system undoubtedly did function with fair success in many parts of the country. In many districts, particularly in the very smallest towns and villages, thrifty, well-paid wage-earners could obtain a home of four, five or six rooms and bathroom, with "modern" conveniences of heating and plumbing, at a price which they could afford to pay. In this way were built those millions of little homes which dot the industrial map of the United States.These houses are the familiar single houses, mostly wooden, or those other well-known types, the two-family houses, the brick row houses of the cities, known as the "Philadelphia" row house, and the New England frame "three-decker."
Weaknesses in housing production
"But," it may be asked, "how could this system of producing wage-earners' homes be wrong, if it provided homes by the millions?" The answer is that the system was wrong, first, because the architecture of the homes was usually inferior; secondly, the system could not minister to the lower-paid ranks as a general rule; and thirdly, because such success as the system did achieve in housing well-paid workers was due to certain favorable economic conditions in the nineteenth century, which for a long period offset the disadvantages of inefficient, small-scale, disorganized and speculative production, which were rooted in the housing business. Moreover—here is the point of it all—when these favorable economic factors gradually ceased to operate, the inherent weaknesses in the system came out. The result of the change is now apparent. The system on which the wage-earner had come to rely for supplying his home is failing him.
What were these favorable elements which enabled the obsolete system of producing wage-earners' homes to last so long? In general, they were exceptionally low costs of land, labor, building materials, transportation, and of taxes and finance.
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