30 contracts signed at $4M and above last week: Olshan

The number contracts on luxury properties in the city has spiked in the past two weeks, but the over $4-million market still hasn’t reached the heights of last year.

In the period between Dec. 5 through Dec. 11, 30 contracts were signed on properties priced $4 million and above. Throughout 2016, only five weeks saw more than 30 contracts signed in the Manhattan luxury real estate market, according to the weekly market report from Olshan Realty [TRDataCustom]. The number of contracts signed on properties over $4 million thus far in 2016 is down 18 percent over the same period last year.

Out of the 30 contracts signed last week, 24 were for condominiums (with an average ask of $9.4 million), two were for co-ops ($7.7 million) and four were for townhouses ($16.2 million.)

The top contract was for billionaire real estate investor Andrew Farkas’ townhouse, which was asking $42.5 million, or $4,082 per foot. The 22.5-foot-wide limestone townhouse at 12 East 73rd Street spans more than 10,400 square feet and has five bedrooms, 10 fireplaces and staff quarters.

Farkas — who heads Island Capital Group — bought the house in 2007 for $23 million, or $2,149 per square foot. He listed it for sale in June.

Just like last week, the no. 2 contract was was at Silverstein Properties’ 30 Park Place. The building’s developer, Larry Silverstein, bought Penthouse 80, and told the Wall Street Journal that he would pay the full price of $34 million, or $5,483 per square foot (though Olshan Realty data has the asking price at $32 million). The apartment has six bedrooms and seven bathrooms across 6,204 square feet. There’s also two terraces that total 732 square feet.

According to Olshan Realty, the median asking price last week was $6.9 million. The average discount from original ask to last asking price for last week was 3 percent. The total weekly asking price sales volume was $308.4 million, and the average number of days on the market was 499. [Olshan] — Miriam Hall