After years courting buyers, Vincent Viola’s Upper East Side townhouse has been discounted by another $9 mill ion.
The 40-foot-wide mansion, with an interior spanning 20,000 square feet, is now asking $79 million — down from the $88 million price tag advertised by Brown Harris Stevens broker Paula Del Nunzio late last year. In 2013 it was listed for a staggering $114 million.
Viola, President Donald Trump’s first nominee for Secretary of the U.S. Army, purchased the property through an LLC in 2005 for $20 million, according to property records. At various times over the years the billionaire has sought to sell it. A deal with a Chinese buyer in 2018 reportedly fell through.
Located at 12 East 69th Street, the property has six levels and 2,650 square feet on the roof terrace. It features its own movie theater and panic room.
According to Mansion Global, it is the priciest townhouse on the market, even with the discount.
The luxury market had a volatile year in 2019, and price cuts like Viola’s are increasingly common as sellers seek to move inventory in a froth-free climate.
In December, a townhouse at 15 East 90th Street went into contract after 1,651 days on the market.
[Mansion Global] — Sylvia Varnham O’Regan