From left: Lois Nasser, Christopher Rounick, Doug Russell, Matthew Russell, Scott Stweart, Geovanna Lim and John Burger

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From left: Some of this weeks top brokers are John Burger, Mary Rutherfurd, Leslie Coleman, Rebecca Steindecker and Kathy Sloane

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From left: Kyle Blackmon, MacRae Parker, Andrew Anderson, John Burger and Clifford Katz

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William Zeckendorf and 927 Fifth Avenue

William Lie Zeckendorf could probably teach his legion of real estate brokers a thing or two about doing a deal. According to the New York Observer, the co-owner of Terra Holdings, parent company of Halstead Property and Brown Harris Stevens, flipped the top half of a 927 Fifth Avenue duplex for as much as $5 million profit in a matter of six months.

Sources told the Observer that the five-bedroom spread sold for “well over” its $31.5 million asking price, and may have even brought in more than $34 million. Zeckendorf paid $29.1 million for the portion of Bruce Wasserstein’s old duplex in a one-day auction in December. BHS’ John Burger brokered the deal but wasn’t available for comment. [more]

22 Gramercy Park South and brokers John Burger and Antonio Cosentino

[Updated: July 8, 1:15 p.m.] A six-story story mansion overlooking Gramercy Park asking $23.9 million has returned to the market about a year after it was last listed, but not before the top three floors changed hands and the house saw a $1.9 million asking price increase. As The Real Deal previously reported, Eric Ellenbogen, the former CEO of Marvel Comics who owned the entire property, at 22 Gramercy Park South, sold the top three floors of the property in May 2010 through Brown Harris Stevens broker John Burger, but kept the bottom three floors to himself. At the time the entire house had also been listed for $22 million. Burger attributed the $1.9 million bump to the rising market, and warned that another price increase is planned for Sept. 15. [more]

From the December issue: The New York City residential real estate market has come a long way
from the dark days of late 2008 and early 2009. But despite the moderate
improvements in the market, succeeding in the current climate remains
far from easy. Many brokers and developers left the industry when the
economy soured, and those that remain have no choice but to be on their
“A” game.
This month, The Real Deal is recognizing people and projects
in the industry who managed to have stellar years despite the difficult
economic conditions. To compile this list, we conducted an online
survey, receiving more than 300 responses. We also got input from
industry experts, gathered data from real estate listings aggregator
StreetEasy, and relied on our judgment as 24/7 industry observers. [more]

BHS’ John Burger and San Remo

The San Remo, the legendary twin-towered co-op at 145 Central Park West, is primed to shatter its own sales records with one apartment in contract for upwards of $15 million and another on the market for $20 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. The first, a 19th-floor apartment with a 2,500-square-foot terrace that was listed for $17.5 million with John Burger of Brown Harris Stevens, went into contract last week. If it closes, it would be the highest-priced sale ever in the iconic building, which has been home to celebrities like Rita Hayworth, Bono and Steven Spielberg, thanks to a notably lax co-op board that doesn’t tend to shy away from big names as much as its peers across the park. (Though, the San Remo’s board did notoriously reject Madonna in 1985). But a $15 million-plus record sale would likely not hold that title for long: the 11-room apartment four floors below has already set a record with its $20 million listing price, and brokers say the very top of the market in New York City is holding strong despite a bleak residential market elsewhere. The 4,250-square-foot apartment, which is also listed by Burger, has three bedrooms, including a master suite that boasts a 23-foot spa bath and dressing room. [WSJ]

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Jamie Tisch and the unit at 720 Park Avenue

Socialite and philanthropist Jamie Tisch has closed on her new 720 Park Avenue pad on the corner of 70th Street for $22 million, according to city records. The five-bedroom, five-and-a-half-bathroom co-op, un [more]

One of the Dakota’s largest apartments, a four-bedroom corner unit, has entered contract, according to the Observer, after almost two years of languishing on the market. Although it’s not immediately clear was the contract price was, the unit’s latest asking price was $12.5 million, an almost 50 percent drop from its original asking price. [more]

Jamie Tisch, the philanthropist and socialite ex-wife of producer and New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch, is in contract on 720 Park Avenue’s fourth-floor apartment for $22 million, sources told the Observer. The 15-room, full-floor home currently belongs to Philip Sassower, CEO of Xplore Technologies and the Phoenix Group, and his wife, Susan. The home, listed by Brown Harris Stevens’ Cathy Franklin and Nancy Elias, has five bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, three maids’ rooms and a wood-burning fireplace. It hit the market in November 2008 for $33 million before taking two price cuts — the last asking price was $27.5 million. John Burger of Brown Harris Stevens represented Tisch, who is planning to move to New York from Los Angeles with her three children this year. [NYO]