Concurrent with recently reported national trends, condominium sales in Connecticut are starting to match and, in some places, outstrip single-family home sales.

The National Association of Realtors recently issued a report stating that condominiums were the best-performing product on the market. The story is similar in Connecticut, where single-family homes remain a strong presence.

Barry Rosa, vice president at Prudential Connecticut Realty’s corporate office in Rocky Hill, said that condominium sales are starting to match single-family sales, which would have been unheard of a few years ago.

“If you look at someplace like Stamford, they’re running sales of 900-plus single-family homes, but they’ve also racking up 900-plus condo sales this year. That’s somewhat astounding when you think about it,” said Rosa.

“Today we have a lot more families where both spouses are working, and these types of buyers have a definite preference for a turnkey home. You see this trend best in some of the newest complexes. You have a turnkey, and it’s much cheaper than a single-family home,” he added.

Rosa explained that often a condo is an attractive alternative to buyers looking for the comforts of a single-family home near an urban marketplace but can’t necessarily afford to purchase one.

“We’re seeing this at all age ranges,” he said. “People are using condos as a more affordable vehicle to get into more urban areas. By paying monthly common charges, their exterior duties are taken care of, leaving families free to do other things with their time.”

‘A Telling Sign’

Condos used to be considered a lower-price, lower-maintenance alternative to a home, either as a first home for new buyers or a last home with fewer maintenance requirements for retirees with fixed incomes. Rosa noted that few would have predicted that condos would start to match single-family homes for market share, let alone outstrip them.

There are several reasons for the change. One is that single-family home prices are simply out of the reach of some young buyers looking to get into a starter home. In Connecticut’s urban areas, “starter homes” are averaging upward of $200,000, while condos are still well below, starting around $150,000.

“If you go for the condo you’ve still got a first home in your desired area but you did it for less,” said Rosa.

Interest rates also have led people to shed their apartments and move over to condos. The rental market in Connecticut has been soft residentially, and mortgage rates have become more affordable.

“We’re seeing buyers who have mortgage payments equal to what they were paying in rent,” said Rosa. “To some extent you could say it’s a leveling of the field, but if you look at it in another way you’re seeing communities where condos are in some cases surpassing single-family sales. That may not seem unusual right now, but compared to a few years ago, that’s a really different pattern.

“I do think it reflects both a preference issue on the buying public side as well as the reality that you can get a condo within your price range easier than you can a single-family home. Clearly, with the pace at which they’re going, condos are becoming one of the more significant parts of the residential marketplace, where I don’t think I would’ve said that back in 1990.”

Apartment construction also has slowed. While sales continue to take place, there haven’t been a large number of new apartment complexes built, at least not compared to the number of new condominiums, according to Rosa.

An interesting trend in condo construction is that units are looking more and more like detached single-family homes. The only difference in some condo communities is the common interest form of ownership – everything else about the houses looks like a regular single-family subdivision.

Rosa noted that 10 or 15 years ago, condos were only looked at as a short-term inexpensive home, or a home for retirees looking for single-level living. However, it is no longer true that condos are second-tier; they are now seen on the same level as residential homes.

“Plenty of people still want single-family homes, but there is a good-sized group that says the condo format isn’t a bad thing. I’ve heard directly from buyers that they don’t necessarily want to spend their free time engaged in yard activities,” said Rosa.

He predicted that in the coming months and years, condo complexes will start to mirror single-family homes more and more, combining the look and feel of a traditional home with the common interest ownership.

“It’s a good strong market, and we really haven’t seen any significant pullback on the buyer side,” said Rosa. “What you’ll see is decreases year to year in unit sales, but you also see that for single-family homes. That in itself if a telling sign.”

Condos have been appreciating rapidly as well, with owners turning their condos around for significant increases. The sale prices themselves have been recorded at astronomical prices. Rosa remarked that one 14-unit complex in Greenwich sold out almost immediately, with prices ranging from $1.8 million to $2.5 million.

“The interesting thing is that these were people trading from single-family detached homes,” said Rosa. “This market is surprising people on the depth and willingness of buyers to essentially choose this form of ownership.”

In Branford, the average sales price of a single-family home rose 19.4 percent, from $294,610 in June 2002 to $351,682 in June of 2003. The number of listings increased by 64.7 percent, from 116 listed through June of 2002 to 191 listed through June of 2003. The number of actual sales didn’t increase quite so dramatically, as 86 houses have sold in Branford this year vs. 70 sales through June of 2002, representing a 22.9 percent increase.

Over on the condo side, the average sales price through June of 2002 of $137,315 increased 17.2 percent to $160,886 through June of this year. Listings increased as well, rising from 183 through midyear 2002 to 207 in the same period this year. Sales only slightly increased, from 143 last year to 151 through June of this year, representing a 5.6 percent change.

In New Haven, however, the picture is slightly different and the condo market appears to be far more active. The average condo sale price in New Haven increased by 38.4 percent, reaching $132,576 through June of 2003. Listings shot up from 145 listed through June of last year to 192 through June of this year – a 32.4 percent increase. Of those, 132 sold last year but only 105 have sold through June of this year. That represents a decrease of 20.5 percent. So while sales prices are up, and listings continue to increase, the actual number of unit sales is decreasing.

The same is true for single-family sales in New Haven. Unit sales are down 12.3 percent from 106 through June of 2002 to 93 through June of 2003.