Harry Macklowe’s Hamptons Home Not Legally Habitable

If $38 million seemed like a lofty price for Harry Macklowe’s East Hampton home, wait for the kicker: It’s uninhabitable.

The estate, which the developer put on the market just last week, can’t be lived in because it has no certificate of occupancy, the New York Post reported. Unpaid fines and legal issues stemming from work Macklowe did at the property stand as obstacles to its sale.

East Hampton Village officials accuse him of illegal land clearing and unpermitted additions at 64 West End Avenue that put wetlands at risk. He’s racked up fines for more than 21 violations, but hasn’t paid the bill for five years.

Macklowe, 86, is fighting back against the East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals, which refused to retroactively approve changes at the property. Mackowe’s representatives have admitted that he built additions and cleared wetlands without the necessary permits.

The episode recalled Macklowe’s rogue, late-night demolition of Times Square buildings just before a ban on razing single-room occupancies took effect.

It’s unclear if a buyer will inherit the East Hampton headache or if the lack of a resolution — combined with an aggressive asking price — will prevent a deal from going through.

Macklowe and the property’s brokers, Douglas Elliman’s Martha Gunderson and Paul Brennan, didn’t comment on the Post report.

Macklowe spent $10.4 million for the home in 2017, using it as a residence with his then-girlfriend, Patricia Landeau — now wife — during his acrimonious divorce from Linda Macklowe.

The 5,500-square-foot home sits on nearly three acres and has four bedrooms and four and a half bathrooms. Futterman Architects designed the home, which has a waterfront gunite pool and is flanked by Georgica Pond.

It is a stone’s throw from the 9,000-square-foot home Macklowe shared with his ex-wife. That home was listed in 2019 for $21 million, but Linda ultimately stayed put.

— Holden Walter-Warner