Report on Contracts Signed
NYC Residential Properties
$4 Million and Above

20 Contracts Signed

Twenty contracts were signed last week at $4 million and above, including 7 over $10 million. Combing through the stats, here are 3 interesting factoids that caught my eye: 1.Of the 20 properties that went to contract, the average time on the market was 303 days, whereas the year-to-date average of all properties that went to contract at $4 million and above was 182 days. 2. The average price of the 20 properties was reduced by 11% before they went to contract compared to the year-to-date average of 3.3%. 3. Of the 7 properties at $10 million and above, none was new construction.

All of which begs the question: WHY? Well, as summer winds down, some sellers throw in the towel, lowering their asking price in order to make a deal. I’ve said this before but it bears repeating: Over my 34-year career, I have found August and the last half of December as the most opportune times for a buyer to get a better price.

The No.1 contract last week was the 8th floor at 1020 Fifth Avenue, asking $19,995,000, reduced from $25 million when it went on the market in April. Originally a 14-room co-op, it was converted into 9 rooms in the late 1980s and lavishly designed by architect Peter Marino. Two rooms face the Metropolitan Museum: a library with a fireplace and a spectacular 20 x 40-foot living room with 18-foot ceilings that has been outfitted with Louis V-style paneling and Venetian parquetry floors. The apartment also has 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, an eat-in kitchen, a formal dining room, and a maid’s quarters. It is owned by the estate of Dr. Mona Ackerman, a clinical psychologist and philanthropist who died in December.

The No. 2 contract was a townhouse at 48 East 74th Street, asking $19,950,000, reduced from $22 million when it went on the market 13 months ago. It is owned by one of the greatest Broadway directors and producers of our time: Hal Prince (Phantom of the Opera, Cabaret, Sweeney Todd, to name a few). Mr. Prince purchased the 6-story Georgian-style townhouse in December 2009 for $12.5 million and renovated it with a theatrical flair that includes a double-height ceiling in the living room. The house has 7,375 square feet with an elevator, garden, eat-in kitchen, 4 bedrooms, 2 libraries, a formal dining room, 6 bathrooms, and 2 powder rooms.

NYC Luxury Tracking Scoreboard: Sales $4 Million and Above
August 5-11,2013