Take it to the Top: Penthouse Deals Around Town Offer Splendid Views and Deluxe Amenities that are Surprisingly Affordable
New York Daily News //June 13, 2014
The loftiest bragging rights in town go to penthouse dwellers — but you don’t have to be Rupert Murdoch or Jon Bon Jovi to own trophy aeries.
True, a penthouse in the iconic Woolworth Building will reportedly hit the market this fall with a whopping $110 million price tag — but not all penthouses are triple-digit budget-busters. In fact, a buyer can still snap up a small top-floor pad in Manhattan for around $1 million, brokers said.
That sounds like a lot — but not compared to the average price for any old condo in Manhattan: $972,428.
“It’s a little secret that you don’t have to spend so much money to get onto the top floor,” says broker John Harrison of Core. “When you hear ‘penthouse,’ you think ‘grand’ — and you think the price is going to be grand as well. That’s not necessarily the case.”
Here are five New York City penthouses where you can live like an oil baron without a matching bank balance:
East Harlem
The Upper East Side is notorious for its expensive penthouses, but venture a little farther uptown to E. 118th St. and you’ll find this colorful two-bedroom pad for $1.02 million.
The eighth-floor pad’s owner, former Austrian pop princess and artist Doris Boris Berman, bought the two-bedroom co-op spread for $779,873 in 2011 but is now moving to Berlin, said her broker, Karla Carrington of Bond New York.
The big selling point: The apartment has its very own north and south-facing terraces, which Berman has brightened up with some cheerful-looking garden furniture.
She snagged the unit with money she got from selling her interest in a real live castle in Austria.
Financial District
Prices are rising quickly, but for now the Financial District remains one of the few neighborhoods left in Manhattan where you can still find a steal.
This one-bedroom penthouse on the 26th floor at 99 John St. is no exception with a price tag of $999,000, a bargain even for the neighborhood.
The owner recently lowered the price because he wants to sell quickly, says Core’s Harrison, who is listing the property with Michael Rosser.
The pad has lofty 14-foot ceilings and comes with access to the building’s fifth floor Zen garden, a fitness center and parking.
The former rental building was converted to condos in 2007.
Gramercy
The buyer of this 280 Park Ave. S. penthouse could borrow sugar from neighbor Rupert Murdoch, who just bought the five-bedroom penthouse around the corner at One Madison Park for a cool $43 million.
The pad on the 27th floor is a little more within reach than Murdoch’s glassy abode. For $1.45 million, you get one bedroom, one bathroom, cool angled glass ceilings and access to the building’s pool and gym.
The building was formerly home to New York Bank for Savings. It was built in 1984 and converted to condos by celebrated architecture firm Beyer Blinder Belle.
Murray Hill
You can watch the world go by from this pretty-in-pink penthouse on the 15th floor at 139 E. 33rd St. The two-bedroom corner coop is a bit small, but it has an impressive wraparound terrace to make up for it.
It also has a mammoth closet fit for a fashionista and a custom sound system. The price tag: $1.28 million.
Brokers Mary Beth Adelson and Jody Martini of Douglas Elliman have the exclusive listing.
SoHo
This flashy aerie at 255 Hudson St. is on the pricey side at $2 million, but in a neighborhood known for celeb residents and pricey boutiques, finding a penthouse gem for that price is a victory.
The one-bedroom pad, perched atop an 11-story building, has floor-to-ceiling glass windows and 13-foot ceilings. The building has a landscaped roof deck with Hudson River views and an outdoor shower for rinsing off after a day in the sun.
TAKE IT TO A HIGHER LEVEL
If your purse strings are a little looser, a new $2.75 million duplex at Central Harlem’s Adeline building has the wow factor.
The four-bedroom pad, one of three penthouses at the building at 23 W. 116th St., has high-end finishes such as wide-plank oak floors, floor-to-ceiling windows, hand-laid herringbone tiles and marble throughout.
It’s perched atop a full-service building with a doorman, a kid’s playroom, a fitness room, a massive central courtyard and a landscaped roof terrace.
A similar apartment in the West Village would cost $8 million, listings websites show.