An 89th-floor penthouse at Chicago’s Trump International & Tower sold for $20 million in the city’s second priciest condo deal.
The condo owned by Sanjay Shay, CEO of Hoffman Estates-based software maker Vistex, sold on March 7 after going under contract in mid-February, the Chicago Tribune reported. Shay bought the 14,260-square-foot full-floor penthouse for $17 million in 2014 and listed the unit for $30 million in September.
The five-bedroom unit features floor-to-ceiling windows, a private access elevator and comes with four penthouse level parking spaces, according to Redfin’s listing. Amenities of the building include a 14,000-square-foot spa and health club and residence outdoor space on the 16th floor.
Interior views of the penthouse (Redfin)
Shah said he would finish the raw space by 2018 and move in, but he never did, though he put up walls and ceilings.
“I hosted quite a few events there, but I never really moved in,” Shay told Elite Street after the sale. “My daughters are grown now. They’ve moved out,” he added.
“To have this much square footage on one floor with 20-foot ceilings is very unusual,” Chezi Rafaeli of Coldwell Banker told The Real Deal. Rafaeli represented both Shah and the buyer, whom he declined to identify. “This is the largest penthouse on a single floor in the Western hemisphere.”
The buyer’s purchase price is the second-highest that anyone has paid for a single Chicago-area property. Citadel Chief Executive Officer Ken Griffin bought four condo units for more than $58 million in the building at 9 West Walton Street in Gold Coast in 2017, in four separate transactions. Only one of his transactions was priced for more than $20 million, according to the publication.
Chicago’s luxury residential market surged during the pandemic coupled with gains in the stock market and people’s demand for more space and privacy. More than 100 homes sold for more than $4 million last year, double the average of 51.5 over the past six years.
Chicago’s luxury residential sales will continue their upward trend this year as people want to get in on the market with inflation creeping up along with a potential interest rate hike, Chezi said.
“It’s [Chicago’s luxury residential market] basically reaching a similar level as the rest of the country because the rest of the country is doing really well,” he said. “If people are jumping into purchasing places, they’re making multiple bids.”
[Chicago Tribune] – Connie Kim