A hefty deal is in the works at a condo tower next to the Museum of Modern Art that’s been plagued by discounts, slow sales and developer disagreements.
Unit 65 at 53 West 53rd Street, asking just under $47 million, was the priciest Manhattan home to land a signed contract last week, according to Olshan Realty’s weekly report. The full-floor apartment was one of 29 properties to find buyers between Sept. 29 and Oct. 5, up from 23 in the previous period.
The building’s developers — a group including Hines and Singapore’s Pontiac Land Group — initially sought $51 million for the 6,400-square-foot pad in 2015, when they began marketing units off of floor plans. They dropped the asking price to just under $44 million when the apartment was listed on Streeteasy in 2017, before raising its price tag again four years later.
The home has four bedrooms and four bathrooms. It also features a corner great room and views of Central Park. Amenities in the 161-unit tower include a concierge, fitness center, lap pool and golf simulator.
The developers tapped Douglas Elliman to replace Corcoran Sunshine at the helm of sales at the project in 2021, following years of sluggish momentum and a series of controversial price cuts that pushed the developers into arbitration with each other. At the time, the building’s projected sellout was lowered from more than $2 billion to $1.96 billion.
Elliman’s Renee Micheli is the sales director at 53 West 53rd Street, with Elliman’s Jade Chan, Frances Katzen and Michelle Griffith all listed as representing the listing on Streeteasy.
The second most expensive home to snag an inked deal was a penthouse at Related Companies’ 520 West 28th Street, asking $35 million. The triplex last traded five years ago for $20 million, down from its initial asking price of $50 million in 2015.
Unit PH37, which was redesigned by the seller, has five bedrooms, five bathrooms and 2,600 square feet of outdoor space spread between a balcony and roof terrace. The condo also features a great room overlooking the High Line, a hot tub and cold plunge pool.
Amenities at the Zaha Hadid-designed building include a pool, garage, spa and fitness center.
Compass’ Hudson Advisory Team, including co-founders Clayton Orrigo and Stephen Ferrara and agent Arran Patel, had the listing.
Of the 29 properties, 21 were condos, five were co-ops and three were townhouses.
This week’s homes’ combined asking price was $287 million, for an average price of $9.9 million and a median of $6 million. The typical home spent about two and a half years on the market and was discounted 9 percent from the original listing price.
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