The latest proof that demand for Manhattan condos is reaching new heights can be found, appropriately enough, on the 58th floor summit of the Woolworth Building—once the tallest skyscraper in New York City. The asking price issued by developers for the 8,975-square-foot penthouse is $100 million, the highest ever recorded in downtown Manhattan. It’s a condo that incorporates nine floors in the building, with the main living spaces situated on the 50th and 51st level. Amenities include a great room and wine cellar on lower floors and a library or media room along with an observation deck at the top.
By comparison, condominiums on the lower floors of the building at 233 Broadway offer 1,200 square feet for a mere $3.5 million. In addition to the penthouse showcase, other units have asking prices above $20 million. One, which occupies the entire 31st story and offers over 6,000 square feet, is currently valued at $24 million.
As stratospheric as the current price statistics appear, experts say they’re not out of line with expected value given the steady rise in the demand for Manhattan condos and the concurrent increase in real estate value. Sales of new properties between 34th Street and the Financial District have risen by almost 100 percent to over 1,200. The average selling price is now $5.7 million, an increase of almost 50 percent from the previous year. Per square foot, record prices have climbed 20 percent and are now approaching $3,000.
To meet the demand for Manhattan condos, developers are jumping into downtown with both feet, as reflected by statistics such as building permits for new units slated for the coming two years. Among the standouts are the conversion of the former Tribeca Verizon Communications office property, as well as Greenwich Lane, a complex that will occupy the former site of St. Vincent’s Hospital. Both are targeting buyers from the local market and will start at prices around $2 million.
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