a "healthy argument" with the administration department practically at all times, but when the control of these departments is properly balanced the result is very profitable to those who place property in the care of such a firm because the administrative department through the brokerage department is always in close touch with conditions of the rental market and with the basis upon which deals can be made.

Such an arrangement has a tendency to give certain organizations a character similar to that occupied by trustees, in that they manage large numbers of properties for individuals who give to them wide discretionary powers. The internal organization of these officers comprises very exact methods of caring for and distributing the moneys which they collect and which they disburse in their duties as managers of property. In order to set up the bookkeeping which is required for this work someone with accounting experience should be employed. The chapter in this book by Walter Mucklow, together with certain books on this subject are recommended.

OFFICE ORGANIZATION

In the selling and leasing of property the methods most commonly used can be best shown by describing a typical rental and sales office which employs several salesmen and two or three clerks. The duties of one clerk are best described as that of information man. His work consists of continuous canvass of the district. Through signs and other indications that property is for sale or for lease information is obtained direct from the owners as to what is offered. This information is kept in a card index under the street number and, in the case of sales, this includes the selling price of the property, the mortgages, the extension of the leases and any other facts relating to restrictions, operating expenses or taxes, which the canvasser is able to obtain. In the case of a lease the exact description of the premises, the rental asked, the length of term of lease which the owner grants, together with any other facts which may pertain to the property in question. These facts are further supplemented by information which is received by any of the other men employed by the firm, or which may come in by mail in the course of a day's business.

The canvasser should devote special attention to important buildings in the district in which he is working and a good canvasser for lofts for rental will become well enough acquainted with an agent, superintendent or someone on the premises so that he will receive early information of any vacancy. The work of gathering information is a very important position in a real estate office and many firms are today insisting that all men coming into their particular organization shall have a certain period at the information desk in order that they may become thoroughly familiar with the district in which they are to work.

The facts collected by an information man are turned over to another employee whose duty it is to keep the files containing the sales information and the rental information up to date. In addition this clerk usually takes charge of clipping real estate items from the daily papers. These items are attached to a card bearing the number of the particular property to which the clipping relates. The files, therefore, are made up so that they will show the following facts:

1. Recorded transfers as published in the real estate columns of the local papers.

2. The news items which have appeared regarding the particular property in question.

3. Any other facts of importance which relate to the property: namely, the fact that the property for sale, noting an extract of the information which can be found in the sales files. It is possible, in the case of an ordinary large building, by looking at the card which contains a description and history of the property, by placing this with a card containing the sales information, and a card containing rental information, to have a complete picture of the condition of the property at any particular time.

The remaining personnel in the firm or in the department is usually composed of the managers of a department or the heads of the firm and the brokers or salesmen.

Upon the heads of the department rest the responsibility for coördinating the work in general and for directing the energies of the various men in channels which they feel will bring the best results. These men should utilize the information obtained from the broader viewpoint of their position to

initiate and work out transactions and to assist in developing them. Their work cannot, of necessity, be involved with the details of a deal, but is limited, rather, to initiating it, acting in an advisory capacity throughout the negotiations, and giving such assistance as may be necessary to bring it to a successful close.

Using Information Files.

The information contained in the files is the groundwork for the men who are engaged in the selling or renting. It is impossible to have records pertaining to all space offered for sale or rent absolutely up to the minute. It is likewise impossible always to have space listed which will fit the particular needs of the person requiring space or to have a building listed which is exactly what a prospective purchaser may want.

However, by using this general information-file relating to all properties, and with it a knowledge of the locality, the successful rental or sales organization is well on its way towards solving the needs of its customers if it has a group of alert and willing men who are enthusiastic in their profession. Information for Specialized Branches.

The records required for a selling organization which is committed to the more intense work of disposing of a definite subdivision are somewhat different. This information is accumulated and chartered so that the men selling may know the extent of competition from other subdivisions. The selling effort is then directed toward the development of interest on the part of logical buyers, already located in the district, their friends and acquaintances, and those general prospects living in districts not so fortunately located.

In the organization which specializes on mortgages it is important to get in touch with those people who are erecting new buildings and to be in touch with those whose mortgages expire. The records on existing mortgages which can be obtained from the registrar's office are very complete, and every well-organized mortgage company has a record of the expiration dates taken from these public records. Those mortgages

which have expired and are known as open mortgages have to be kept permanently in mind.

The system most generally in vogue in mortgage companies is an equal division of responsibility for handling a transaction. One group of men is engaged with those who wish to borrow money, and the other group in seeing prospective investors. The ability to place a loan rests largely upon the appraised value of a property. Many mortgage brokers maintain a special appraisal department, in order that they may more quickly bring a mortgage loan in line with conservative standards.

Real estate (or other property) can be put in trust for specific purposes, with certain restrictions, under the general laws of any state in the United States.

Following these same general principles, the Real Estate Trust, with transferable shares, came into general use in Massachusetts about 1888.

It is not generally understood that the keystone of the Massachusetts Real Estate Trust is the existence of Professional Trustee offices in Boston, and as these are not in existence to any great extent elsewhere in the United States, it is first necessary to describe the rôle which these trustees play in the community. It is doubtful whether the real estate trust will be widely used in any community, unless offices of private individual trustees are well established first.

In other American cities most of the trust property is in charge of corporate trust companies. In Boston, there are various large professional trustee offices which are older than any of the trust companies, and while the trust companies are now healthy competitors in certain types of trust business, the professional trustees' offices have almost a monopoly of the real estate trust business and these private trust offices compare favorably, both in trained personnel and in total amount of trust property handled, with the trust departments

1 William Minot, Boston, Mass., is trustee for numerous estates, in and around Boston, but is more widely known as a trustee and manager of real estate trusts which operate around Boston and in many Western and Southern cities. He is a member of the Executive Committee and of the Trust Committee of the State Street Trust Company, of Boston, and a director in numerous corporations.