Why Most Second Homes are Condos
While the second-home market may have fallen on hard times in recent months, one type of vacation property is still going strong: condos. According to a new National Association of Realtors study , sales of vacation homes in 2007 fell 31%, to 740,000, from 2006. But sales of condos dipped only slightly — down 2.8% — while sales of detached homes dropped 38%. The upshot is that condos cornered a substantially larger share of the vacation-home market last year: 29%, up from 21% in 2006.
What’s the big attraction? Well, if you’ve ever owned a home, you already know. No one who buys a second home as a vacation property wants the hassle of maintaining a single-family home. Condos are less expensive to buy, easier to maintain, and often offer amenities like fitness rooms, pools and concierge services. Vacation condos have become popular in places where you once didn’t see them — places like Lake Michigan, for example.
Interestingly, although condos remain popular as second homes, values dropped about 10 percent last year. The reason: many resort condos are owned by investors who decided to dump their units when the housing market got a little rough.
The drop in condo prices, combined with their continued popularity suggests that a vaacation condo bought in the right place may also be a sound investment.
Read more about condos as second homes.
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