New York City’s residential market rolled into 2022 off the momentum of a historically hot 2021 before buyers and sellers hit the brakes in the face of interest rate hikes, economic uncertainty and inflation concerns. Prices and deal volume largely fell, but one corner of the market managed to welcome in top-dollar deals. From a near-record at 220 Central Park South to three $50 million sales in as many months at the Crown Building conversion, some of Manhattan’s most-watched developments closed ultra-luxury deals despite the larger slowdown. [Source: TRD]
Buyers didn’t go far for sky-high sales, all of which occurred in Billionaires’ Row and the Upper East Side’s Lenox Hill neighborhood.
Here are New York City’s 10 priciest residential deals in 2022:
220 Central Park South | $188 million
When Daniel Och parted with his penthouse pied-a-terre at 220 Central Park South, it was for double what he paid just two years earlier — not bad for the Och-Ziff Capital founder. Joe Tsai, co-founder of Alibaba, paid $188 million for the four-bedroom apartment.
The deal, which worked out to nearly $20,000 per square foot, was in familiar territory for Tsai. The Brooklyn Nets and Liberty owner has two other apartments at 220 Central Park South, purchased in 2021 for a combined $157 million.
The Vornado Realty Trust building still holds the record for America’s most expensive home sale, set in 2019 by hedge funder Ken Griffin’s $238 million penthouse purchase.
East 66th Street | $101 million
The estate of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen sold two apartments last summer on East 66th Street for a combined $101 million. The sale at the Lenox Hill co-op just off Central Park included a penthouse, which Allen picked up in 2011 for $25 million, and an apartment on a lower floor.
Allen, who was also an NBA owner (Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers), had an estimated worth of $20.3 billion upon his death in 2018, according to Forbes, making the Upper East Side apartments worth one-half of one percent of his wealth.
Earlier last year, Allen’s former 120-acre Beverly Crest hilltop estate sold for $65 million. Often referred to as Enchanted Hill, the property originally asked $150 million.
730 Fifth Avenue | $76 million
With the finish line in sight for Vlad Doronin’s $750 million conversion of the Crown Building to condo units and a hotel, a mystery buyer plunked down $76 million for an apartment at the Midtown property.
The deal was the priciest of a string of city-wide price peaks to come out of the Aman New York project, where Vlad Doronin’s OKO Group is converting 20 floors of former office space into a 22-unit condo and 83-key luxury hotel.
220 Central Park South | $72 million
A full-floor unit at 220 Central Park South sold for $72 million in an off-market deal in November, and a unit on a lower floor went to the same anonymous buyer for $3 million.
The three-bedroom apartment on the 75th floor has 5,000 square feet, plus a 300-square-foot terrace. Sponsor Vornado Realty Trust said at the end of the third quarter 107 units had sold at the building, netting more than $3 billion.
432 Park Avenue | $70 million
A trio of apartments sold at 432 Park Avenue — an 8,000-square-foot unit on the 82nd floor and two smaller ones on the 29th floor — to Yossi Benchetrit and his wife, Gaëlle Pereira Benchetrit, for $70 million.
Yossi is the chief procurement and programming officer at Altice USA, while Gaëlle founded cosmetic clinic Clinique des Champs Elysées New York. The couple paid almost $24 million for a four-bedroom apartment in the building in 2016.
36 East 68th Street | $57 million
The seller of a 9,200-square-foot townhouse at 36 East 68th Street didn’t just agree to a deal for $57 million — he threw in the furniture for an extra $3 million.
The 22-foot-wide home includes six bedrooms and staff quarters, plus a pool and sauna. An entity connected to Italian grocery executive Felice Lasalvia di Clemente overcame local critics to renovate — they didn’t go for oval windows, a larger cornice or “peculiar” dormers — after acquiring the home in 2012 for $16 million. The buyer was reportedly a financial professional from South Africa.
12 East 63rd Street | $56 million
It took six years and a $21 million price cut, but a 13,000-square-foot townhouse sold for $56 million fresh off a renovation.
The six-story home at 12 East 63rd Street, between Fifth and Madison Avenues in Lenox Hill, came with seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms, staff quarters and a three-story glass atrium. It is 25 feet wide. Both buyer and seller were shielded by limited liability companies. Previously bought in 2010 for $19.6 million, it was listed in 2015 at $77 million.
730 Fifth Avenue | $55 million
The Crown Building was good for three of last year’s top sales last year, one of which saw a mystery buyer grab a full-floor condo unit on the 22nd floor for $55 million.
The deal came out to roughly $8,730 per square foot. The asking price for the apartment was roughly $62.5 million, according to the condo’s offering plan. The 22nd-floor apartment covers approximately 6,300 square feet and includes four bedrooms.
730 Fifth Avenue | $53 million
The 21st-floor unit sold to a mystery buyer in August. No loan documents were associated with the sale, suggesting an all-cash buy.
The sale marked the third unit in as many months to sell for at least $50 million at the project.
111 57th Street | $50 million
A duplex penthouse spanning 7,130 square feet sold at 111 57th Street for $50 million to an anonymous buyer. First listed for $57 million, the condo has four bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms and views of Central Park.
The upper floor is a dedicated living space. The Billionaires’ Row building, known as the world’s skinniest residential tower, was steeped for years in financial trouble and controversy, partly due to investments from Russian oligarchs.
