16 BULLETIN 874, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
while somewhat more than half the purchases involved indebtedness 
of 65 per cent or more. 
In the great majority of sales involving a mortgage there was only 
a first mortgage. In many cases, even when the amount of mort- 
gage indebtedness was greater than 50 per cent of the sale value, the 
entire indebtedness was carried on a first mortgage. Since the estab- 
lished credit agencies will not ordinarily lend on so large a margin 
of the value of a farm, such mortgages were usually carried by the 
seller. Out of a total of 820 first mortgages it was found that 141 
were for 75 per cent or more of the sale price, while 536 were for 50 per 
cent or more, the average of all first mortgages being -56.4 per cent. 
About one-fourth of the sales involved a second mortgage, which aver- 
aged 32.2 per cent of the sale price. In 10 cases the second mortgage 
ed 60 per cent or more of the purchase price, and in 68 cases 40 
per cent or more of the purchase price. Such cases, however, probably 
represent instances where an existing first mortgage had been ar- 
ranged with some credit agency at a lower level of value and the seller 
found it necessary to assume a very large part of the increase of value 
as well as a considerable margin of the old value by taking a second 
mortgage. 
Table X is a summary of the duration of loans in the case of 701 
first mortgages for which this information was obtained. 
TaBLE [X.-—Number of purchases involving mortgage indebtedness, classified by per cent 
of indebtedness to purchase price. 
Number of | 
ae eq | Pet cent of mortgage indebtedness to a cmos 
olen BEECH Se Eee purchased. 
mortgages ; 
110 SO Ordre = = ss eee eee 13.1 
333 Ghand-ander:s0. ==) ee ee 39.7 
265 50: and- under 6525. St 31.6 
131 Less than ws S225. se sees ans | 15.6 
839 ceseteseteteeceeeeeeeeeeee eee eeeeceee 100.0 
TABLE X.—First mortgages, classified by duration of loan. 
gages, y ) 
Number |~,,.3 | Number | y Number |» Number | ~ 
of years ae ee of years ‘Sumner of of years See of years | ae ie 
to Tun. SUSE: torun. s | to run. Bages. torun. | SENS 
| ! 
| 1 6 5 246 | 10 241 16 3 
2 12 6 15 11 5 20 9 
| 3 35 7 27 12 4 25 ay 
| 4 27 8 27 4 | 30 1 
| 43 1 9 11 15 | 26 33 3 
It appears from Table X that there is a strong tendency to make 
mortgages either for 5 years or for 10 years, nearly 70 per cent of the 
first mortgages being about equally divided between these two 
periods. 
