UPDATED, 9:00 a.m., Dec. 7: Some brokers swear they’d take a bullet for their clients. Others use the Secret Service’s willingness to do so as a selling point.
721 Fifth Avenue, 31H (credit: Douglas Elliman)
Within days of Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election, two Douglas Elliman brokers sent out an email with the subject line “Fifth Avenue Buyers Interested in Secret Service Protection?” The email promoted an apartment on the market at Trump Tower [TRDataCustom], a one-bedroom listed for $2.1 million by the two brokers, Ariel Sassoon and Devin Leahy.
The email, sent Nov. 13, claimed the 31st floor apartment is “the best value in the most secure building in Manhattan,” and referred to “The new aminity [sic] -The United States Secret Service.”
A spokesperson for the brokerage said the email was “completely unauthorized and done without the knowledge or approval of Douglas Elliman.”
Trump developed the tower in the 1980s, and lives in a triplex at the top of the building. He has said he would like to spend as much time as possible there even after he takes office, which is shaping up to be an expensive nightmare for the city’s police force and a headache for retailers.
Earlier this week, Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city is seeking $35 million in federal funds to pay for security at Trump Tower. City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Council member Daniel Garodnick also launched a petition aimed at pushing the federal government to foot the security bill.
StreetEasy shows that Trump Tower has 16 active sale listings and 16 active rental listings, according to Politico. [Politico] — Miriam Hall
This story has been updated to include a response from Douglas Elliman.