Apartment owners at Manhattan’s 15 Central Park West, home to Goldman Sachs Group Inc chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and the musician Sting, are seeking to double their investments after the complex shattered price records and sparked a wave of ultra-luxury listings.
Four condos have hit the market since May with asking prices at an average 192 per cent premium over what owners paid in 2007 and 2008, according to data from StreetEasy.com. The priciest listing came last week, with Leroy Schecter, chairman of metalworks firm Marino/Ware Industries Inc, seeking US$95 million for a five-bedroom unit on the 35th floor.
The dual limestone towers have set a standard for New York’s trophy-home market, which has seen a surge in demand from investors and foreign buyers. The sale in February of former Citigroup Inc chairman Sanford Weill’s penthouse for a record US$88 million has emboldened owners in Manhattan to “test the waters” for expensive properties, said Jonathan Miller, president of appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. …
