The Chinese buyer who paid nearly $70 million in March for a penthouse at the Sherry-Netherland is now looking to make a quick and hefty profit from it. The 18th-floor co-op at 781 Fifth Avenue is set to hit the market today asking $86 million, or over $9,500 per square foot.
Brown Harris Stevens’ Kathy Sloane has the listing for 9,000-square-foot apartment, which has seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms and more than 2,000 square feet of outdoor space.
The seller, Genever Holdings LLC, picked up the property – fully furnished – less than a year ago from Gilbert Haroche, co-founder of Liberty Travel, and his wife Charlene. The Haroches listed the penthouse for $95 million in 2012.
The pad was pieced together from smaller units purchased over the years.
If it were to sell at its full asking price of $86 million, the penthouse would set a new record for the city’s priciest co-op.
Leonard Blavatnik currently holds that distinction, after his $77.5 million purchase of Jets owner Woody Johnson’s duplex at 834 Fifth Avenue. Other big-ticket sales include Israel Englander’s $71.3 million unit at 740 Park Avenue and Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris’ $70 million purchase of the late Edgar Bronfman’s penthouse at 960 Fifth Avenue.
The last time the Sherry-Netherland pad was on the market, it went through a succession of brokers. Sloane initially co-listed the property with Dolly Lenz. Later, Lenz was replaced by Douglas Elliman’s Lisa Simonsen, who was in turn replaced by Elliman’s Tal and Oren Alexander. Serena Boardman of Sotheby’s International Realty and Brown Harris Stevens’ John Burger also had the listing. Sloane, who sold Courtney Sale Ross’ duplex co-op at 740 Park Avenue for $52.5 million, ultimately brought the $70 million buyer to the deal earlier this year, she said.