More than half of the homes going up on the 300 block of Hay Street downtown have been sold at a brisker-than-expected pace and with little advertising.

The buyers have snatched up homes months before they will be ready. Many are lured to cosmopolitan life and short walks to stores, parks and the library.

The new homeowners include a married couple in their late 20s, an 85-year-old widow, a doctor and a military family. Mayor Tony Chavonne and his wife, Joanne, have bought a 2,800-square-foot penthouse on the fourth floor that will become their new home later this year.

Suzanne Pennink is the broker in charge of selling the five penthouses, 20 townhouses and 16 condominiums within a complex of three buildings at Hay Street and Ray Avenue. The Ray Avenue townhouses overlook Huske Hardware House restaurant.

Pennink said 24 of the 41 residences have sold. The first 10 townhouses, on Ray Avenue, are scheduled to be finished by October. Because of demand, she hasn’t even needed to advertise the properties in the Multiple Listing Service, a popular real estate database.

“I think it’s a lifestyle, like a gated community and golf course attract a certain people,” Pennink said.

A public-private venture is behind the construction, which has erased years of neglect and decrepit-looking buildings that once marred the 300 block of Hay Street. The project, which began in 2003, is the latest effort that promises to breathe new life — and in this case, residents — to the city center.

All of the homes will be wired for Internet use, but some buyers are putting in extra high-tech amenities. With a touch of a button on a remote control, homeowners can adjust the heat or air conditioning, the window shades, music and lighting throughout their homes.

Carolina Custom Home Theatre in Sanford is one of the firms that new owners have hired to customize their control systems.

Sola Edwards, who owns the company with her husband, Mark, said installation of a sound system in the den can run a few thousand dollars. Fancier control systems throughout the home can cost much more, she said.

“These people who are buying these homes are busy people,” she said. “They want to make their home life just as simple as possible.”

Pennink and her husband, Menno, have bought one of the penthouses and equipped it with state-of-the-art control systems. Menno Pennink is a partner with 300 Block Investors, the developer of the project. The other partners are Tommy Bradford, Ralph Huff and Mark Stout.

The city of Fayetteville has spent $1.8 million demolishing buildings, preparing the site and putting in sidewalks and a parking lot. The city sold the land where the buildings are standing to 300 Block Investors.

That company, in turn, hired Atlas Resource Management Inc. to construct the three buildings at a cost of about $11.5 million. ERA Pennink & Strother Real Estate is marketing the properties.

The perimeter of the complex will have trees, parking and a fountain. The main building facing Hay Street will have an exercise room, concierge and garages. Work on the third building faces Franklin Street started this summer and is scheduled to be finished in February.

One potential marketing obstacle — the ubiquitous trains that rumble through downtown — has turned out to be no big deal, Suzanne Pennink said.

“We all had a little fear of the train,” she said. “Are they going to worry about the train noise?”

The buyers said no. “They said that’s music to their ears,” she said.