Upper West Side new developments, from left: the Laureate, the Rushmore, the Aldyn and 846 West End Avenue

The median listing price for new development apartments in Manhattan is up 10 percent year-over-year to $1.486 million in May, according to Streeteasy.com’s new development May market report. Contract activity and median sales prices for new homes in Manhattan and Brooklyn have increased significantly year-over-year. Meanwhile inventory has declined, most significantly in Brooklyn, where it was 33 percent lower than it was a year ago, and 19 percent lower than six months ago. [more]

Developer Maurice Mann and the interior and exterior of a penthouse unit at the Laureate

Maurice Mann, the original developer of the Apthorp condominium conversion, has purchased a penthouse unit at the Laureate, the Stahl Organization’s new luxury condominium at 2150 Broadway, for over $7 million, according to public records filed with the city today.

Mann closed on the 2,532-square-foot, three-bedroom residence at the Laureate on Nov. 18, according to records, with a price of $7.37 million. Though he was not immediately available for comment, a person who answered the phone at his office confirmed the purchase.

The unit, which boasts “a great room with extra large windows and a set of French doors that open to a Juliet balcony at the [front] of the building,” was last listed with Shlomi Reuveni, a broker and head of the Brown Harris Stevens Select team, for $7.7 million, according to Streeteasy.com. … [more]

From left: the Laureate, the Time Warner Center, 15 Union Square West and 57 Reade

Not only are Chinese banks investing millions of dollars in New York
real estate, but Chinese business people are also increasingly
buying luxury condominiums in Manhattan, the New York Times reported.

The average sale is a one-bedroom apartment for about
$1.45 million, Pamela Liebman, CEO of the Corcoran Group, told the New
York Times. Many of them are purchasing the properties as second homes
or as housing for children studying in New York. In one case, Liebman
said, a parent spent $20 million on an apartment for a daughter going
to college in Manhattan…. [more]

The Laureate, penthouse unit C3 and Shlomi Reuveni of Brown Harris Stevens Select

The Laureate, at 2150 Broadway, opened for sales this week, according to its developer, the Stahl Organization, and Brown Harris Stevens Select, the exclusive marketing team headed by executive vice president Shlomi Reuveni. The 20-story, 70-unit condominium is already 23 percent sold, with 16 residences purchased and several more units in contract. The building — on the corner of 76th Street and Broadway — was designed by SLCE Architects and Deborah Berke & Partners Architects. The Laureate consists mainly of three- to seven-bedroom units, ranging from 1,700 square feet to over 4,000 square feet. TRD… [more]