Jon Rubinstein Drops $17M at Extell’s 50 West 66th Street

One of the leading engineers behind the iPod has hit pause on his search for his next property.

Jon Rubinstein, known as the “Podfather” for his role in leading the engineering team behind Apple’s first iPod, spent $17.1 million on a condo at Extell Development’s new development project at 50 West 66th Street in Lincoln Square, according to public records.

The closing price is over $500,000 more than the last asking price for Unit 40W. Spanning roughly 2,800 square feet, the condo has three bedrooms and three bathrooms, along with a 140-square-foot private loggia with views of the Hudson River and Central Park.

The sale comes over a year after Rubinstein and his wife, former software-company executive Karen Richardson, listed their 5,550-square-foot apartment in San Francisco for over $25.5 million. The pair took the home off the market in January, according to Zillow.

At the time of the listing, Rubinstein and his wife were spending more time at their home in Vero Beach, Florida. “Homes should be used,” Rubinstein told the Wall Street Journal. Rubinstein also had multiple stints at Hewlett-Packard and took on the role of co-CEO at hedge fund Bridgewater Associates.

It’s not clear if Rubinstein plans to move to his New York digs full-time, but a wealthy buyer with homes around the country spending nearly $20 million on a condo is a positive sign for those in the city worried about the effect that an incoming pied-à-terre tax will have on the luxury market.

In May, Manhattan saw 90 contracts signed for homes asking at least $5 million, according to a Corcoran report, which was 10 percent above the May 10-year average.

The sale is the latest deal to close at Gary Barnett’s ambitious Lincoln Square project, which has seen a number of pricey sales in the last year, including a roughly $47 million deal for unit 41E, which spans 7,000 square feet in December.

Listings for the project on StreetEasy are held by an in-house team at Extell, as well as Corcoran’s Beth Benalloul and Hilary Landis, and Douglas Elliman’s Janice Chang.

Amenities at the 127-unit tower include an indoor saltwater lap pool, sauna and steam room, as well as full-size basketball and pickleball courts. The building will have another set of amenities on the 20th floor that include an outdoor saltwater pool and hot tub.

The building is now over 80 percent sold, according to Marketproof.

Gary Barnett has not sat on the laurels of his success at 50 West 66th Street. In May, Barnett’s Extell paid $500 million for a site at 405-417 Park Avenue, which appears to be the centerpiece of a future Park Avenue development, around which Barnett has scooped up a number of other sites.