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Top Sales and Contracts: $440.5M in Manhattan Deals; Penthouse at The Benson Tops Contracts for Second Week in a Row

November 23, 2020Download PDFRead Full Article

In Manhattan last week, there were 239 condo, condop, and co-op sales amounting to $440,526,881, the highest since mid-March. The 115 condo sales came in at a median of $1.715 million ($1,531/ft2). The 120 co-op sales came in at a median of $780,000. A full, sortable list of apartment sales may be found below. The Greenwich Lane, the luxury condominium complex that rose on the former site of St. Vincent’s Hospital, had a good week with two homes in the top five. Indeed, the third week of November was a good one for downtown condos and coops. The one outlier in the top five was a Park Avenue cooperative that sold for $7.3 million. Also downtown, closings commenced this fall at 126 West 16th Street, a new boutique condominium on a tree-lined Chelsea block. Three listings were in the top ten, and remaining availabilities start at $3.35 million. Olshan Realty’s market report notes that the week before Thanksgiving is traditionally a big one in the luxury real estate market, and that holds true even in 2020: From November 16-22, 25 contracts were signed for Manhattan listings priced at $4 million and up. This is the highest total since the first week of March 2020, and this week’s asking price total inched up from last week to $194,823,000. For the second week in a row, a penthouse at The Benson had the week’s top contract. This one has three bedrooms, three and a half baths, three private terraces, and an asking price of $22 million. The Benson has attracted attention for its Upper East Side address, its traditional yet modern design, its luxurious amenities, and most recently, its billboard featuring Jerry Seinfeld. The Benson is still under construction, but the second-highest contract of the week took place in a long-standing New York City Landmark: A four-bedroom duplex at The Eldorado entered contract with an asking price of $19.999 million. This was the most expensive co-op to sell on the Upper West Side this year, and one of eight co-ops to enter contract in the past week. The report states that this is the highest total of co-op sales since the last week in January 2020, when eight co-ops also sold. From the listing: Corner penthouse duplex with 3 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms perched above the new Benson condo. The unit has 3,780 square feet and 3 terraces that total 676 square feet. Downstairs is a living room with a fireplace, formal dining room, eat-in kitchen and a powder room. There are terraces off the living room and eat-in kitchen. Upstairs is 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. The master bedroom opens onto a a 10′ x 21′ terrace.