"Nearly a decade ago, financier Harsh Padia and his wife, Purvi Padia, spent $29.1 million for an apartment in Manhattan's West Village, paying top dollar for a duplex at the 150 Charles Street condominium. In March of this year, they sold the unit for $60 million, more than twice what they paid and a record figure for downtown Manhattan.
The buyer's identity was telling: He works at Jane Street Capital, a quant trading firm that recently expanded its headquarters at nearby 250 Vesey Street in Battery Park City, according to people familiar with the deal.
A seismic shift is taking place in downtown Manhattan. Traditionally, the city's most expensive real estate has been uptown, on Billionaires' Row, Central Park West and the Upper East Side [1].
But with a spate of big-ticket sales and listings below 14th Street, downtown prices are starting to rival the city's most expensive uptown enclaves. As finance and tech firms have migrated downtown -- alongside new retail, parks, and cultural institutions -- a new wave of luxury condo development along the West Side Highway is luring wealthy buyers to neighborhoods like the West Village, Tribeca and Chelsea [2].
"There's a whole bunch of very wealthy people working in the vicinity, meaning they often want to live in the vicinity," said real-estate agent Clayton Orrigo of Compass. "They're buying up the West Side Highway." [3]
There were more $30 million-plus home sales below 34th Street in the past five years than in the previous decade, according to data from Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group. Since 2023, the area has seen more than $1 billion worth of home sales above $20 million.
In February, a penthouse at 67 Vestry Street in Tribeca sold for $41.4 million, while a unit at West Chelsea's One High Line sold last year for $49 million. A penthouse at 150 Charles tied to former Credit Suisse executive Robert Shafir sold for $52 million in 2023; Shafir had paid $29.38 million in 2016.
Asking prices have also shot up. At Aurora Capital's under-construction condominium 140 Jane Street in the West Village, a penthouse is on the market for $87.5 million and three units have gone into contract for more than $40 million since sales launched last year. In the West Village, Zeckendorf Development is building 80 Clarkson, where a full-floor residence is asking $75 million. A garage-to-condo conversion at 125 Perry has a $57.5 penthouse in contract. In West Chelsea, former Howard Hughes Corp. CEO David Weinreb has listed his 551 West 21st Street penthouse for $75 million.
"These are new levels that we've never seen before," said Orrigo, who has the listing for Weinreb's apartment.
Downtown has long drawn wealthy buyers, with condominiums like 150 Charles and 70 Vestry fetching high prices. But in recent years, office and retail development in the Meatpacking District and Hudson Yards has led financial and tech firms to opt for office space downtown, bringing even more deep-pocketed buyers with them.
Companies like Deloitte, StubHub and Jane Street Capital have signed major leases at Hudson Yards and near the World Trade Center.
In February, Google opened its newest Manhattan office space at the old St. John's Terminal on Washington Street in Hudson Square. "It's one of the wealthiest corporations on the planet," said Leonard Steinberg of Compass. "That changes the profile of the neighborhood."
In mid-May, the sports merchandising company Fanatics signed a lease in Hudson Square; founder and CEO Michael Rubin owns a $43 million penthouse at nearby 160 Leroy Street.
Demand for the area's many historic brownstones is strong -- a $72.5 million Greenwich Village townhouse sold in 2024 -- but few renovated houses are available. Meanwhile, wealthy buyers are clamoring to buy large units in newer condo buildings, agents said, but inventory is limited. There are few development sites left and new buildings face height restrictions in historic areas, so many of the new condos downtown are boutique buildings with fewer units than those on Billionaires' Row.
"There's just a backlog of buyers that haven't been able to buy ultraluxury apartments downtown," said Peter Zaitzeff of real-estate brokerage Serhant, who listed the Padias' unit.
Zaitzeff was part of the sales team at 70 Vestry, which launched sales in 2016, and he still gets near-weekly phone calls asking if he has anything in the 47-unit building. "I have clients in the building who can basically name their price," he said, but most aren't motivated to leave. "You're not getting into that building."
New downtown condominiums are angling for wealthy buyers with larger units than the area has seen in the past, and with luxe amenities comparable to those on Billionaires' Row.
"In the past, you just couldn't get that scale -- whether a townhouse or apartment," Steinberg said, noting that buyers have an "obsession with new" and will pay a premium to avoid renovating. "It really is an arms race in luxury to out-luxe your neighbor."
There are only 14 units at 140 Jane, whose amenities include automated parking, a pool, gym, sauna, porte-cochere and even a private park, said Aurora's Bobby Cayre. As of mid-May, 12 units had been sold since sales launched in August 2024. "We didn't have a sales gallery, to be honest with you," Cayre said. "We were selling off of Zoom meetings."
With 112 units, 80 Clarkson is one of the largest of the new projects. The building, located adjacent to Google's new outpost at St. John's Terminal, was initially priced from $6.755 million for a two-bedroom unit to $63 million for a five-bedroom. The $75 million residence -- which will measure about 7,368 square feet with five bedrooms -- was released in May. Amenities include a private restaurant, pool and library. Residents also have the option of buying private wine cellars. The cost? Up to $1 million each.” [4]
And it will be the same in Vilnius. The new taxes are intended for that, not for buying tiny mines scattered in the grass. There will be a corner for the rich, and everyone else will live on the street and eat from garbage cans. Now it's a mess - a person has nothing to eat, but lives in a good apartment, in a good place.
1. Billionaires' Row, a cluster of ultra-luxury residential skyscrapers in Manhattan, primarily located along 57th Street near Central Park, is known for its high prices and opulent residences. Central Park West, located on the western edge of Central Park, is another area with a reputation for expensive real estate and affluent residents. The Upper East Side, while also affluent, is generally considered more traditional and less focused on super-tall buildings than Billionaires' Row
2. West Village, Tribeca, and Chelsea are distinct New York City neighborhoods with unique characteristics, offering a mix of historic charm, modern luxury, and vibrant culture. West Village, known for its tree-lined streets and historic brownstones, is a charming and upscale area with a relaxed atmosphere. Tribeca, on the other hand, is a hip area with industrial-chic loft spaces, trendy boutiques, and upscale dining. Chelsea, located north of Tribeca, is known for its art galleries, and the High Line, an elevated park.
3. The West Side Highway (also known as the Joe DiMaggio Highway) is a major highway in Manhattan, New York City, connecting the southern tip of Manhattan to West 72nd Street. It's a 5.42-mile-long section of NY State Route 9A, primarily a surface road but with a brief elevated section between 59th and 72nd Streets. It was originally known as the Miller Elevated Highway and was a part of Robert Moses's West Side Improvement. The northernmost section, where it merges with the Henry Hudson Parkway, is an elevated freeway
4. MANSION --- New York's Wealthiest People All Want To Live Downtown Now --- Following tech and finance firms to Lower Manhattan, buyers are flocking to the Village, Tribeca and West Chelsea. Solomont, E B. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 23 May 2025: M1.
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