2 minute read
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Yep. In witing.
That's how we guarantee L-P Outdoor Wood.t"
And we guarantee it for thirty full years.
Which means if L-P Outdoor Wood"" residential lumber suffers structural damage from decay or termites within thirty years, we'll replace it. No maybes. No weasling. No fooling.
And that even goes for lumber in firll contact with the ground.
So guarantee satisfaction for your customers. Stock L-P Outdoor Wood. It's quality Hem Fir or Pine. It comes in natural green tone or handsome pre-stained Cedartone. And each piece is labeled with our guarantee.
Call now. Louisiana-Pacific Corporation: Albuquerque, NM (505) 873-0511; Cloverdale, CA (707) 894-3362; Fremont, CA (415) 657-6363; Rocklin, CA(916) 6244525; Orange, CA (7I4) 998-6500; Phoenix, Ail (602) 246 -157 8; Samoa, cA(707) 443-75rr.
DAVID CUTLER
Editorial
Mortgage Retirement Accounts
lll/ESTERN dealers have long had apositive UU reputation for innovation and the willingness to try something new. Recent efforts coming out of the Rocky Mountains show this spirit is alive and well. Their willingness to try something new to fight tough times is commendable indeed.
The Mountain States Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association has been very active in a growing national campaign to gain congressional approval for a new program designed to move billions of dollars of new capital into the home mortgage market.
Called a "Mortgage Retirement Accountl'it would allow savers to "buy down" existing home mortgages with tax deferred dollars. This would let homeowners pay off their mortgage faster, and provide extra money for consumer spending. It would also free up large amounts of capital for new mortgages.
According to the association, for example, if a homeowner had a $50,000, 3O-year mortgage at l59o the monthly payment would be $632.23. At the end of 30 years the total payout would be $227,602.80. An MRA would allow Joe Homeowner to pay up to $2000 per year against the principal. Thus, in ten years and three months, he could pay off the loan and save $ 149,838.51 in interest to boot. A similar example, using $1000 in additional tax deferred payments against the principal would result in the mortgage being retired in l3 years and I I months with an interest savings of $122,020.39.
A major benefit of the proposed MRA program is that it is an expansion ofthe existing Individual Retirement Account system and could thus tie in with an on-going program. As visualized by proponents, the cost to the U.S. Treasury would be virtually nothing because of the tie in feature. Advocates see jobs beir€ created and tax revenues increased as mortgages are paid offearly. They feel these dollars then would be available to correct the long term funding problems currently bedeviling the housing and building material supply industries. An earlier end to mortgage payments would also aid citizens at retirement time, an especially appealing feature given the current problems of the Social Security System.
The MRA is an attractive idea that merits considerable study. We tip our hats to the MSL & BMDA for their aggressive role in promoting MRA.
