Mr. Leigh valued each of the five houses of Mr. Palmer at $1.200, although he said they might to day be built for much less, making $6,000. The land he valued at $14,000, it coni taining 2,910 stjuare feet, which would make the value of the square foot $4.86. But, he said, let us say $4 a foot for this claim 10 and add $100 for old material. The area is 580 square feet, which at $4 a foot would be $2,320 and, adding in the $100 for old matter, would make a total of $2,420. Now if the owner puts in about $900 more, for that money He, dould build another four storey house and would have a good income bearing investment.
His Lordship-Just what do you mean by undeveloped and over-dev-loped property'?
Mr. Leigh-I call property undeveloped which In its present condition is not earning a fair return on the investment but which bysjudiciousexpendi: ture of a reasonable amount of money could be pat in condition to earn a proper retard on the invest- ident; and, on the other hand, I cousidar a pro. perty over-developed when it has more bricks had mortar and finishings on it than ou be made to yield a reasonable retard. The $900 estimate I have made in this case is what I should consider fair and sufficient odtlay for the purposes in- tended. The second house of this olàim, the larger one, I valne at $1,300, It is in good con dition and is 17) feet wide. It is lighted, og three sides and has a shop on the ground floor and the uper portion is used for dwelling pur- poses. The house is exceptionally well built and fs. I should say, »Bɔnt ted years old. The rent, as ra'urred by the assessor, was for 1892 $35 and for 18:13 $3 per month; there was no re- turu made for the smaller house. The Assessor assessed the rentals for the thres Fears at $340. $320, and $300. I have storaged The rent at 83166 a month, which givas for the year $373 92. De lusting for; re- pairs, Crown rent, taxes, and fire in- surance, and capitalising at 7 per cent. for 14 years, although really it ought to be 14.28 years, we should arrive at a value for the house of $4.300. I make no deduction for deprecia- tion by the rear of the house during the years of the capitalisation. for that is allowed for in the value given to the property to-day. And that is just where the value of a surveyor's services comes in. Almost any one can value a new house, but a house that is in good condition is good i It makes uo differance whether it is old or dow. Some people, in fact, much prefer a house that is well dried out and has stood the test of a for years trial. If a house is in good con dition and is properly cared for it will last the fourteen years of the compensation and probably even much longer. Adding then the 10 per cent. for compulsory sale gives $1,730, which, added to the $2, 62, makes 37,392, including the 10 per cent. The house is in a thorngbl▼ Manitary condition. In making the valuation of 57. Square Street, I follow the same method and make the same deductions as I have in the other ordinary cases and as has been followed in the colony for years. In some houses it would maka
difference no
whether there were mezzanine floors or not, where ons person takes a whole floor, for he then subdivides it to suit the conveniences of his family it only affoots houses used for coolla lodgings, and lu those it will be very difficult to prevent banks, overcrowding. fr they will put in enbicles, and other devices. No Chinaman will sleep on the floor, not even under the new Ordiu auce, I do not allow in these estimates for con- ereting the doors. The property now belongs to the Government and it will have to provide for this.
Chan Kwai, landlord of the property, was then called as wituose and said-I was offered verbally by Mr, Palmer $2 600 for the one piese, but did not sure to sell as I had fitted it up to use for my business. I bought it five years ago and paid $2,200 for it with the house or it The same year I also bought the corner hou+0 and paid $3.130 for it.
Hoa. F. A. Cooper, Director of Public Works, was then called as a witness and stated that be bad examined the property 57, Square Street, and ho found that the rentals returned for '1893-1894
7
560
amounted to $300 and that the rutals for the big house for three years were respectively $340, $320, and $300, and the little house $140 for each year; therefore, calling the large bonse $300 and the small one $140, the total rent would be $440 per annum; dednoting $0 for the sundry items embraced in the Crown rent and so forth would leave a net rental of $350, which, at twelve years' purchase, would amount to $4200, from which should be deducted $40) that it would be neces sary to expend on the property to put it in a sanitary condition.
At this point a general discussion arose ba tween the mombers of the Board and the repre- sentatives of the Government as to whether the Government had not represented the very worst side of some of these tonements, the Board say- ing that at the first session the Government had brought in witnesses concerning the worst rookeries in the colony and these they hardly thought fair average illustrations of the coolia lodging houses. The special cases to which the Board referred were threo witnesses introduced by the Government at the first session, who testi- fed that one, a coolie, who lived at 44, Market Street, had one of these places to sleep in suđ paid only 25 nauts a month. He said he earned 150 cash a day, when work was good, but other dys only 30 or 40 cash. A coolie woman_also appeared and said that she and br busband bad a cockloft where they lived and paid 10 cents a mouth for the two. Another coolie, who was more of a capitalist, deposed that he had a room for himself aud wife and two children on the ground floor for which be paid one dollar a month. Mr. Cooper then said that the Government could produce any kind of specimens the Board might care to see, but that these were fair re- prosentatives of that class among which the plague had been most destructive and who were the tou ants of these oleap overcrowded places and wero those it was most necesary to guard against as they were the most apt to introduce and spread con- tagion. He then continued his description of the property and said that No. 57, Square Street. had three storeys, which by mezzanines had been converted into six. and No, 85 had two storeys that had been made into four by the same pro- Oess. The cubic capacity of No. 57 was 31,000 cubic feet, which at 3 cents a dubic foot for non- struction would make $9 30, but he estimated its present value at $498. The enbie capacity of No. 65 was 15.700 feet and would cost to con- struct $470 and its prosent value he astíinated to b. $282. He thought the depreciation of No. 57 was fully 25 per cent, and that of No. 65 at least 40 per cont. He estimated the valno of the ground of No. 57 at $2 per square foot and of No. 65 at $1.80. He then entered upon a long statement of the value of property all around this property as found from sales and other antries in the public records, showing that pro- perty in that vicinity varied from $1 to over $5. He considered these houses were a bad case of overcrowding, there being 46,700 cubis foot, which, less one-third for walls, flooring, and other parts of building, furnishing and personal effects, left 31,000 cubic feet of air, which divided by 400, the amount specifled in the now Ordinance, gives accommodation for 30 persons, which at $4 per head per year would return $524 gross, less 13 per cont. for taxes $41.80, collection expenses at 5 per cent. $16, fire insur- ance 1 per cent. on $1.40 $14, and 3 per coat. for repairs, making $120, leaving net income of $200, which would make at a twelve years' valuation $2.400, but there were really other deductions that should be made, re- dacing it to $2,340. There are cabioles and short doors that do not comply with the law and must be taken into account, which will cost something and will necessarily reduce the rentals. The floors also have to be covered with concrete. It would cost $400 to $500 to repair the houses as they now stand. Ho Baid that his valuation bad been made recently and that doubtless the houses had depreciated considerably through standing open and vacant since the plague. These houses, he also said, were supposed to be part of that block in which no cases of plague were reported.
This terminuted the proceedings of the day and the Court adjourned until today (Monday)