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At 220 CPS, 91% of condos are sold amid “very soft” market: Vornado

17 units closed during Q4 2019 totalling $565.8M

It’s not often Vornado Realty Trust gives an update on 220 Central Park South. But when your building is 91 percent sold, why not brag a little?

The real estate investment trust said Wednesday that it has sold 65 units at 220 CPS to date for total net proceeds of $1.8 billion. After a string of deals in late 2019, the project is nearly sold out “in the face of a very soft luxury condo market,” Michal Franco, the company’s president, said during its fourth-quarter earnings call.

In its 2019 earnings report, Vornado said it closed on the sale of 54 units for $1.6 billion last year. A total of 17 units closed during the fourth quarter alone, for a total of $565.8 million.

Vornado has said it will reinvest $1 billion in profits from 220 CPS into its Penn District redevelopment. On Wednesday, the company said it expects $1 billion in closings at the tower in 2020. (It was not clear how many units remain in contract.)

Last year’s big-ticket sales included Ken Griffin’s record-breaking penthouse buy. In January 2019, the Citadel founder closed on a 23,000-square-foot spread for north of $238 million.

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A flurry of buyers also closed at the tail end of the year, including billionaire Daniel Och, who paid nearly $93 million for a 9,800-square-foot penthouse.

Vornado also closed several other units for $60 million, $55 million and $59 million.

An analysis of closings at 220 CPS last year by The Real Deal found the median time between contract and closing was nearly three years. The discrepancy raised the question of whether some condos closed at prices greater than they would fetch today.

It’s too soon to know whether that will impact resales at the development. In January, Arel Capital’s Richard Leibovitch listed his unit at 220 CPS in what may end up being the building’s first resale. Leibovitch listed the 31st-floor pad for $36 million, roughly $10 million more than he paid a year ago.

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Write to E.B. Solomont at eb@therealdeal.com

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Ken GriffinVornado Realty Trust