Grace Hightower, Robert De Niro’s Ex-Wife, Sells Co-op For $18M

Grace Hightower, the ex-wife of Robert De Niro has moved on from the former couple’s home.

The actress and philanthropist, who married De Niro in 1997 and before the couple separated in 2018, sold the pair’s five-bedroom co-op on Central Park West for $18 million, according to public records.

Hightower listed the apartment in the property known as the Brentford for $20 million in May, slightly under the $20.9 million that she and De Niro had paid in 2006. Compass’ Leonard Steinberg, who had the listing, told the Wall Street Journal at the time that “co-ops have gotten pretty beaten-up, pricewise.”

Hightower and De Niro undertook extensive renovations to the 5,700-square-foot duplex after a 2012 fire left their home unlivable for around a year. The pair rented at 165 Perry Street in the West Village and later 15 Central Park West, according to the Journal.

The corner primary bedroom has three windows overlooking the park, along with three conjoined walk-in closet spaces. Four other bedrooms all run on the northwest wing of the upper level, while the lower level holds the living room, dining room and eat-in kitchen.

The previous owner of Hightower and De Niro’s apartment was disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein.

The 28-unit co-op at 88 Central Park West has been home to a number of famous names, including Sting and photographer Annie Liebovitz, who sold her home for $10.7 million last February. Liebovitz also traded her co-op, which she bought in 2014, for a small loss.

The co-op market’s performance has seen a divergence in recent years between its low-end and high-end segments, according to data from Miller Samuel. Last year, the median sales price of co-ops with at least four bedrooms was $4.9 million. This year the median price is down to $3.5 million.

Meanwhile, studios have stayed flat at $420,000, barely down from last year’s $425,000.

Hightower and De Niro’s divorce proceedings made headlines through much of Covid, with much of the duo’s personal life exposed. De Niro in July 2020 said Nobu Hospitality, the high-end fusion chain he co-founded, was struggling to make money.

The actor has since been focusing his real estate energies on his billion-dollar movie studio Wildflower Studios in Astoria, Queens. Construction wrapped on the 765,000 square foot complex last year.