Ownership Housing Summary

Meriden ownership housing, both single family and condominium, has been very strong in recent years due to affordability and good liquidity in the market.  As a result, new construction has occurred but almost entirely in the single-family home market.  While the single-family market is leveling off at present, the demand for condominiums continues to be strong, driven by demographics, low interest rates and affordability.  Demographic drivers for demand include growing single households of all ages and downsizing or retiring households. 

Most Meriden condominium complexes are older other than small infill new construction and the last phases of Paddock Village.  Resale condominiums are in short supply and demand remains strong both for investor and ownership units.  Untested in Meriden has been the new generation of empty nester, downsized condominium units.  These developments have been popular and sold well in Wallingford, Southington, Cheshire and Middletown over the past ten years.  A broader trend of such development has been evident as well in Fairfield County and along the Connecticut shoreline east of New Haven to the Rhode Island border.  While much of this demand has been associated with retirement amenities such as golf and waterfront living, demand is also increasing for urban core empty nester housing.  Condominium development for this market is in planning or underway in Stamford (several projects), Norwalk, Danbury, New Haven and Hartford.  What constrains these urban projects is the scarcity of developable sites and greater difficulty in obtaining financing rather than lack of demand.  Where land can be assembled, it has frequently been the case until recently that multi-family rental development is simply easier to produce and more profitable to develop. 

In the case of Meriden, the city’s commercial center would represent a pioneering location for ownership housing, as the area is overwhelmingly renter-occupied.  Furthermore, demand would be constrained by what an entry level buyer’s income could sustain and what an empty nester nets on the sale of an existing home.  These factors would contribute to prices falling into a range of $125,000 to $250,000.  The entry-level buyer can be expected to support the lower level of this range at $125,000 to $175,000.  Relative tax burden on the value of a new construction condominium unit could also be a constraint to new condominium development in this location as well. 

Supporting the site from a locational standpoint is the great proximity to shopping at the mall and grocery anchored centers, the Mid-State Medical Center (both as employer and health care provider) and the highways.  As the center rolls out as a place to live, shop, recreate and work, ownership housing demand can be expected to follow.  Pent up ownership demand notwithstanding, however, from a market standpoint, rental will be more likely to precede ownership housing in this location.