plus 70 percent of the additional value up to a maximum mortgage of $9,450; for higher valued new homes and for practically all existing homes (including those under construction or recently completed) the maximum ratio was 80 percent of value up to a maximum amount of $16,000. Under the 1954 amendments to the National Housing Act, the maximum ratio for new 1-family homes was increased to 95 percent of the first $9,000 of FHA appraised value plus 75 percent of the value in excess of $9,000 up to a maximum mortgage of $20,000; for existing homes the new maximum ratio was 90 percent of the first $9,000 of appraised value plus 75 percent of additional value up to a maximum mortgage of $20,000. Transactions involving properties in Alaska, Guam, and Hawaii are permitted higher maximum mortgage amounts; in recognition of the higher cost of construction and property prices, the maximum mortgage amounts may be as much as one-half higher. In the value ranges from $12,000 upward, most of the new and existing-home transactions with loan-value ratios in TABLE 62 Ratio of loan to value by property value of single-family homes, Sec. 203, 1954 Ratio of loan to value-Percentage distributions excess of 80 percent probably involve properties located in Alaska, Guam, or Hawaii where the maximum loans and ratios of loan to value are higher. Those existing-home cases with loan-value ratios of more than 80 percent and property values of less than $12,000 are for the most part properties approved by FHA prior to the beginning of construction and constructed under FHA inspection and hence eligible for the higher maximum mortgage amounts. Property Value Characteristics Under the FHA underwriting system, one of the basic processes is the determination of the value of the property, including the house, other physical improvements, and land. Involved in this determination is a consideration of such items as the estimated replacement cost of the property, its rental value, selling prices of comparable houses, the type and location of the neighborhood, the character and market price of the site, materials and quality of construction, the size of the house, and garage facilities. The following portion of the report is devoted to an analysis of certain characteristics of the properties involved in the Section 203 transactions insured during 1954. PROPERTY VALUE DISTRIBUTION.-In the Section 203 transactions insured by FHA during 1954, most of the properties had FHA estimated FHA ESTIMATE OF VALUE SINGLE-FAMILY HOME MORTGAGES, SECTION 203, 1954 TABLE 63 Property value of single-family homes, Sec. 203, selected years values of $8,000 to $11,999. As Chart 35 and Table 63 indicate, nearly % of the new homes and roughly one-half of the existing homes were in this range. The proportions of existing homes exceeded the new in the higher value brackets. About % were in the $12,000 to $15,999 range compared with 27 percent of the new, and % were valued at $16,000 or more-nearly twice the proportion reported for new homes. Properties with values of less than $8,000 comprised less than 7 percent of the new homes and only about 8 percent of the existing homes. Compared with 1953, both new- and existing-home values exhibited a general upward shift. As shown in Table 63, the changes in the new home distribution followed a pattern of alternating decreases and increases in the value groups below $12,000-those valued at less than $8,000 declining from 17 to 7 percent, those in the $8,000 to $9,999 range increasing from 29 to 35 percent, offset by a decline in the $10,000 to $11,999 range from 30 to 25 percent. While the proportion with values of $12,000 to $12,999 remained unchanged, properties in the higher value ranges ($13,000 or more) increased from 13 to 24 percent. Changes in the existing home distribution were more regular-all value groups below $13,000 occurring in smaller proportions than in 1953, while those valued at $13,000 or more showed increases. PROPERTY VALUE BY STATES.-Tables 64 and 65 show, for each State and certain Territories, median property values and the distribution of the property values for new- and existing-home transactions insured under Section 203 during 1954. Median new-home property values ranged from about $8,800 in North Carolina to $22,500 in Alaska. In most (25) States and 1 Territory the median was in the $9,000 to $10,999 range, and in 19 States it was between $11,000 and $12,999, with only Montana, Alaska, and Hawaii exceeding $13,000. Only 3 Southern States had median values below $9,000. TABLE 64 Property value by States, new 1-family homes, Sec. 203, 1954 Property value-Percentage distribution State to Median to to or Total more With the existing-home median value of $11,500 for the nation exceeding the new-home median ($10,700), a parallel relationship obtained in two-thirds of the States and Hawaii. Typical existinghome values ranged from $6,600 in Puerto Rico to $19,500 in Alaska. In 28 States median property values ranged between $11,000 and $12,999, in 15 States between $9,000 and $10,999, with 5 States and the District of Columbia in the $13,000 range, Hawaii in the $15,000 range, and Alaska in the $19,000 range. TABLE 65 Property value by States, existing 1-family homes, Sec. 203, 1954 Property value-Percentage distribution State Median to to erty Less $8,000 $10,000 $12,000 $14,000 $16,000 $18,000 $20,000 to to |