Penthouses prop up Manhattan’s luxury contracts 

Penthouses are king in Manhattan this month, powering the borough’s luxury market through slower mid-summer weeks. 

The property type has accounted for nearly a quarter of all the luxury contracts signed in Manhattan in the last two weeks, according to Olshan Realty’s weekly report on properties asking $4 million or more. 

Ten penthouses found buyers in the period with an average asking price of $10.7 million. The homes — five condos and five co-ops — spent roughly a year on average the market and were discounted 15 percent from the initial asking price. 

Though penthouses are leading the charge, the most expensive property to snag an inked deal last week was a West Village townhouse asking just under $23 million. The renovated home at 83 Horatio Street spans 6,200 square feet and has five bedrooms and five bathrooms. 

The five-story townhouse, built in 1852, is 23 feet wide and features four fireplaces, a terrace and backyard. It last traded for $10 million in 2015. 

Douglas Elliman’s Christopher Riccio and Elana Zinoman had the listing. 

The second priciest home to find a buyer was a penthouse at 212 West 18th Street in Chelsea, with an asking price just under $16 million. The duplex condo, which hit the market in October, spans 3,100 square feet and has three bedrooms and four bathrooms. 

Unit PH8 — which last traded for $12.5 million in 2017 — also features a 190-square-foot terrace and views of the Hudson River and downtown Manhattan. 

Amenities at the building, known as Walker Tower, include a doorman, fitness center, playroom and library. 

Bespoke Real Estate had the listing. 

Walker Tower’s crown jewel penthouse was at the center of a money laundering scandal in 2016, when U.S. Marshals seized the apartment from its then-owner Emirati businessman Khadem al-Qubaisi. The seizure was part of a federal investigation into the Malaysian investment organization known as 1Malaysia Development Berhad, or 1MDB.

The agency later sold the penthouse to wealth manager Ron Vinder for a 64 percent discount from the previous purchase price, prompting outrage from other owners. The building’s condo board turned to the New York Supreme Court to try and repossess the unit, arguing that the transaction violated their bylaws. 

Buyers signed contracts for 20 homes asking $4 million or more last week, down from 22 in the previous period. Of the total contracts, 15 were for condos, three were for co-ops and two were for townhouses. 

The homes’ combined asking price was $176 million, which works out to an average of $8.8 million and a median of $6.6 million. The typical home spent 824 days on the market and received a 10 percent discount.

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