Condo prices on an upswing, report says.

Prices in the Manhattan condominium market were down 9.9 percent in 1992, although the luxury residences in the Gold Coast area Fifth, Madison, Park, Central Park West and Central Park South) showed an increase of 2.3 percent for the year and a 12.31 percent price appreciation since the end of 1990, according to the Heller Equities Condominium Price Index prepared by the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Real Estate Center.

The Manhattan decline continues the steady fall in overall prices since the high in 1989, and represents a 16 percent drop in price.

Other highlights of the report by Professor Susan M. Wachter of the Wharton Real Estate . Center at the University of Pennsylvania, who has constructed an econometric model exclusively for Heller Equities Incorporated, are:

* Lexington Avenue to York Avenue prices declined 7.3 percent in 1992, showing a price depreciation overall of 12.17 percent since year end 1990

* Upper West Side prices fell 13.7 percent in 1992, posting a 21.73 percent price drop overall since the end of 1990

* There were 2,333 condominium sales recorded in 1992, down 20.62 percent from the 2,939 recorded in 1991

* There were 368 residential permits issued in 1992, the second year in a row that permits dropped below 750

* An investment table for residential condominium owners shows that a home held for at least five to seven years still provides a steady financial return. A typical condominium purchased in Manhattan in 1984 for $500.000 would have sold for $540.600 in 1992, providing the owner with a return of 5.1 percent per annum, not including tax benefits

The Heller Equities Condominium Price Index: Manhattan, constructed by Professor Wachter, is the first complete econometric model to focus entirely on the Manhattan condominium market. It calculates marketwide changes in value over time. The index tracks all resale prices of residential condominiums located from 50th Street to 86th Street, and from the Hudson River to the East River, on an annual and quarterly basis. Heller Equities Incorporated is a full-service real estate development and investment organization. The New York-based company has developed more than $250 million worth of residential real estate in Manhattan, Long Island, New York State, and northern Virginia. Past and present developments include high-rise condominiums, single-family homes, townhouses and garden apartments.