Celebrities

June 16, 2017

After less than a day on the market, Donald Trump’s childhood home finds a renter

Since initially hitting the market last summer, Donald Trump's childhood home in Jamaica Estates, Queens has seen quite the runaround. After a price chop from $1.65 to $1.2 million, the listing was pulled in November to head to the auction block, but shortly thereafter Manhattan real estate mogul Michael Davis bought the Tudor-style home sight-unseen for just under $1.4 million. He then flipped it for $2.14 million, nearly twice what he paid and double the neighborhood average. Mansion Global now has the scoop that the mystery buyer, whose identity was shielded behind the LLC “Trump Birth House,” will rent it out for between $3,500 and $4,000 a month, on par with similarly sized homes in the neighborhood. ***Update 7/16/2017: Just one day after it was announced that Donald Trump's childhood home would be placed on the rental market, DNA Info reports that the Queens property has already found a tenant. Real estate agent Jason Friedman of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage told the website that "a long-term lease, for at least a year" was signed "almost immediately" after the home was listed, although for how much is not clear. Friedman shared only that the rent was more than the $3,500 reported yesterday. No word yet on who has scooped up the property.
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June 16, 2017

The Harlem townhouse where Harry Houdini lived is for sale, asking $4.6M

If anyone can convince a buyer to part with $4.6 million for a four-story townhouse in an historic and happening part of Harlem, it's a magician. This four-story 18th century townhouse at 278 West 113th Street, on the market for the first time since 1991, has certainly got one in the form of master escape artist Harry Houdini, illusionist, magician and one of the buzziest celebrities of the early 20th century. Houdini–born Erich Weiss, son of a rabbi from Budapest–and his wife, Bess, lived at the Harlem home for 22 years until his death in 1926 (h/t Curbed).
This house is no illusion
June 15, 2017

Hilary Swank’s picture-perfect former Village townhouse asks $12M

This historic classic brownstone at 33 Charles Street in the West Village, asking $11.995 million, is the very picture of townhouse charm in a neighborhood that's overflowing with charming brownstones. Adding to the home's cachet is the fact that Hilary Swank lived here with then-husband Chad Lowe from when she purchased it for $3.9 million in 2002 until 2006 when it was sold for $8.25 million (h/t New York Post). The home has been completely updated with central air and new windows throughout and every imaginable modern convenience, though much of its original woodwork has been retained.
See all the rooms of this gorgeous home
June 14, 2017

Meg Ryan drops $9.4M on apartment in celeb-favorite 443 Greenwich

Meg Ryan will be joining Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Jennifer Lawrence, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, and Harry Styles at Tribeca's “paparazzi-proof” 443 Greenwich Street. The Real Deal spotted her her trust, Third World Dog, listed as the buyer of a $9.39 million, three-bedroom unit in the building, just a month and a half after her $10.9 million Soho loft went into contract.
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June 9, 2017

David Rockefeller’s historic Upper East Side mansion lists for $32.5M

David Rockefeller, billionaire philanthropist, former head of Chase Manhattan, and grandson of John D. Rockefeller, passed away just three months ago at the age of 101. For the 69 years prior, he lived with his wife Peggy at this historic Upper East Side mansion at 146 East 65th Street. Now, as the Wall Street Journal reports, the rare 40-foot wide townhouse has hit the market for $32.5 million, and the listing photos showcase Rockefeller's impressive collection 18th-century furniture and Chinese and European porcelains (paintings by Cezanne, Gauguin, Matisse, and Picasso have unfortunately been blurred out).
Learn more about the storied home
June 9, 2017

Kelsey Grammer’s Chelsea condo in contract for nearly $8M

Nearly a year after first hitting the market for $9.75 million, Kelsey Grammer's condo at Jean Nouvel's glassy 100 Eleventh Avenue in west Chelsea has gone into contract, reports the Wall Street Journal. But despite the fact that that the listing showcased his piano from the set of "Frasier" and the impressive 100 feet of massive windows providing Hudson River and skyline views, the selling price came in at just under $8 million (the price was reduced to $8.95 million in March).
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June 9, 2017

Dramatic Sutton deco duplex that belonged to Sen. Jacob Javits asks $5.2M

New York City's classic pre-war co-ops are in an elegant class by themselves, with beamed high ceilings, big casement windows, entry halls and galleries, maid's rooms and gracious spaces in general. The more interesting among them tend to be those in which the customized luxury of their longtime residents has been preserved. Such is case with this spacious duplex at 322 East 57th Street in Sutton Place (where you'll find a lot of preserved customized luxury). The listing describes the three-bedroom deco-era co-op, listed for $5.195 million, as "exquisite, dramatic and unique." Designed in 1933 by renowned architect Joseph Urban, the 3,300 square-foot apartment was for 40 years the home of the late Senator Jacob Javits and his wife, Marian, who died earlier this year. And while it's likely that there are many updates to be made, there are also many surprising details that have returned with today's trends.
Check out the glass cube
June 8, 2017

Sculptor Richard Serra drops $7M on Tribeca loft, now owns entire building

When this sprawling, full-floor Tribeca loft at 173 Duane Street first hit the market for $7.95 million at the beginning of the year, 6sqft wasn't the least bit surprised at its strikingly creative interiors, considering it was owned by artist Merrill Steiger. As we noted, it's the same building where prolific sculptor Richard Serra has lived and worked since the 1990s. At various points, he and his wife Clara have purchased the first, third, fourth, fifth and sixth floors of the early 20th-century cast-iron building, most recently paying just under $4 million for the third floor in 2011. This left only the second floor out of their hands, but LL NYC reports that Serra has just coughed up $7 million for Steiger's unit, giving him ownership of the entire building.
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June 8, 2017

Diane Kruger snags eco-friendly loft in Tribeca for $4.2M

Actress Diane Kruger, who recently took home the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival last month, just scored a chic two-bedroom unit in Tribeca for $4.2 million. The building, built in 1869, includes six units and features amenities like an on-site fitness center and a residential lounge with greenery. As reported by the New York Post, Kruger’s pad spans 1,943 square feet and has 11-foot high ceilings. Last month, the actress sold her apartment in the East Village for $1.1 million, higher than its $985,000 listing price, following a 12-offer bidding war.
See inside the chic loft
June 7, 2017

Jon Bon Jovi puts sprawling West Village duplex on the market for $17.25M

"Never Say Goodbye" certainly doesn't hold true when it comes to Bon Jovi's real estate game. Exactly two years ago, the Jersey rocker unloaded his Soho penthouse for a hefty $34 million, shortly thereafter picking up a sprawling duplex condo at new celeb-favorite 150 Charles Street for $13 million. But now, as Curbed tells us, he's on the move again, listing the West Village pad for $17.25 million. That upgraded price tag will get you over 4,000 square feet of contemporary interiors, plus a massive 52' x 29' landscaped terrace and two smaller balconies.
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June 6, 2017

‘Today’ show host Savannah Guthrie lists Tribeca loft for $6M

"Today" show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie and husband Michael Feldman, a political consultant, have put their Tribeca apartment on the market at an asking price of $5.995 million. As LLYNC learned, Feldman bought the three-bedroom apartment in 2012 for $3.8 million. The 2,691-square-foot condominium was designed by BKSK Architects and boasts five floor-to-ceiling windows as well as a 200-square-foot storage unit.
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June 5, 2017

Some Trump Palace apartment owners want to remove the building’s name

Google Street View Despite winning the presidential election last fall, Donald Trump’s New York City properties have hit a losing streak. Trump-branded hotels and condos throughout the city have seen a sharp decline in event bookings and property values. And at the 55-story Trump Palace at 200 East 69th Street, one of the tallest towers in the neighborhood, the average unit sits on the market for 107 days, 35 percent longer than the average luxury unit. To combat declining property values, an apartment owner at Trump Palace has written a letter asking neighbors to come together and remove the name “Trump” from the building, as the Hollywood Reporter discovered.
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June 1, 2017

Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel get $7M discount on Tribeca penthouse

Back in March, 6sqft reported that Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel signed a deal for a penthouse at 443 Greenwich Street in Tribeca. At the time, the exact apartment wasn't known, though it was assumed it may have been Penthouse G, then under contract for $27.5 million. This was correct, though the power couple ended up paying only $20.2 million for the 5,375-square foot home, according to The Real Deal. The "paparazzi-proof" building--it boasts privacy-focused amenities like an interior courtyard, underground garage, and a porte-cochere--has attracted former tenants including Mike Myers, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, Jennifer Lawrence, and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton.
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May 30, 2017

Anthony Weiner’s $12K/month Union Square duplex is prematurely pulled

This Union Square apartment has certainly seen its fair share of scandal. Notorious former Congressman Anthony Weiner, along with wife and Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin, moved into the duplex rental at Zeckendorf Towers in November 2014, just after his failed mayoral run and sexting scandal. And now that Abedin filed for divorce (nearly nine years since the couple announced their separation) after Weiner pled guilty to sending sexual text messages to a minor, they may finally be parting ways with the contemporary home. Three days ago, the Post reported that the unit hit the market for $11,900 a month, but the listing has since been pulled, perhaps from the publicity or because it was rented.
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May 25, 2017

Robert Moses’ former Yorkville home lists for $2M

"Master builder" Robert Moses–he of the 13 expressways that crisscross New York City–spent the 1970s living with his wife, Mary Grady Moses, in a three-bedroom co-op at 1 Gracie Terrace in Yorkville on Manhattan's Upper East Side (h/t NYPost). We can see how the home's sweeping river views would inspire the subject of Robert Caro’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, “The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York,” when pondering the conflicting issues of a complicated and changing city. The apartment is now for sale asking $1.95 million.
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May 22, 2017

Robert Downey Jr. snags a historic windmill cottage in East Hampton

Sources tell Behind the Hedges that "Iron Man" actor Robert Downey Jr. bought the historic Edward DeRose Windmill Cottage on East Hampton. Built circa 1885 to resemble a local windmill (it was never functional), the home sits on four acres and boasts a seven-bedroom main house, two-bedroom guesthouse, three-car garage with a potting shed, 50-foot pool, tennis court, and gorgeous landscaped gardens. It's been on and off the market since 2014 when it listed for $13.5 million. The following year, the price dropped to $11.5 million, but property records show a sale last summer for $10.5 million disguised under an LLC.
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May 22, 2017

52 wave sculptures designed by celebrities like Slash and Cara Delevigne hit NYC

Ocean conservation nonprofit Project 0 has partnered with luxury skin care brand La Mer, to bring 52 wave-shaped sculptures designed by artists and entertainers like Keith Richards, Slash, Sienna Miller, Rita Ora, Cara Delevigne to NYC. Between May 20 and June 21, the La Mer Wave Walk will feature public art pieces throughout the five boroughs to raise awareness about ocean conservancy, as DNA Info learned. The installations will be up for auction on June 21, with all proceeds going to the charity La Mer Blue Heart Oceans Fund for Project 0.
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May 18, 2017

Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard renting at Midtown’s swanky MiMA tower

The Mets’ powerhouse pitcher Noah Syndergaard is renting a posh two-bedroom apartment at Manhattan View at MiMA while recovering from a partially torn lat muscle, according to the Post. The star player, admirably known as “Thor” because of his long locks, lives with his girlfriend Alexandra Cooper and fellow Mets pitcher Robert Gsellman in the rental at 460 West 42nd Street, which was designed by Arquitectonica and boasts views of the Hudson River, George Washington Bridge, Columbus Circle and Central Park. Though there aren't details on his specific unit, two-bedroom rentals start at around $6,000 a month.
See inside the units at MiMA
May 18, 2017

Glamorous Yorkville penthouse once home to Irving Berlin lists for $7.9M

Growing up at the turn of the century on the Lower East Side, which was then home to the Yiddish Rialto (the largest Yiddish theater in the world at the time), is how legendary Hollywood songwriter Irving Berlin was first exposed to music and theater. But later in life, he moved his family uptown, first to Sutton Place and then to 130 East End Avenue, an Emory Roth-designed co-op in Yorkville right across from Carl Schurz Park. He lived in the penthouse duplex, which biographer Laurence Bergreen described as "a formal, stately dwelling with impressive views of the East River," from 1931 to 1944. Now, the still-stately and "One of a Kind" home has just hit the market for $7.9 million.
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May 18, 2017

Alec Baldwin sells Eldorado apartment for $1.25M

When he's not channelling his inner Trump, Alec Baldwin spends a good deal of time buying and selling NYC real estate. He and wife Hilaria welcomed their third child in the fall, presumably making their current $12 million three-bedroom home in Greenwich Village’s Devonshire House a bit too small (Alec also owns the unit next door, and as 6sqft reported, he sold another one-bedroom in the building for $2.1 million in 2015). The couple was seen scoping out a couple Nomad-area places this fall, but they may now be ready to make the jump as Alec has unloaded yet another apartment, this time uptown at the Eldorado on Central Park West. The unit was an annex, or perhaps maids quarters, for a larger spread in the building, which Alec sold for $9.5 million in 2011. Six years later, he's found a buyer for its counterpart, scoring $1.25 million from private equity firm founder and political economist David E. Spiro.
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May 15, 2017

Rosario Dawson’s family wants to buy low-income housing units in the East Village

Actress Rosario Dawson’s family hopes to buy low-income apartments in a newly renovated building as part of a city program that converts abandoned homes into affordable units. Rosario grew up in an East Village squatter’s den and her family continues to live in the East 13th Street co-op, even after the actress became famous and amassed a net worth of more than $16 million. According to the New York Post, long-time tenants of the building say the Dawson family bullied their way into controlling a third of the 14-unit residence over the last 20 years.
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May 15, 2017

Rent Jennifer Lawrence’s Tribeca pad for $27.5K a month

After a fairly lengthy house hunt, Jennifer Lawrence dropped $9 million on a sprawling Tribeca loft in January. The apartment is at 443 Greenwich Street, which has become a celeb hot spot due to its "paparazzi-proof" amenities such as a below-grade parking and a private interior courtyard. But now that she's in London filming "Red Sparrow," Lawrence has put the home on the rental market, first listing it in February for $30,000 a month and now dropping the price to $27,500 (h/t TRD). Whoever inks the lease will be able to call Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, and Harry Styles their neighbors.
More ahead
May 12, 2017

Cyndi Lauper lists French Country Connecticut home where she wrote ‘Kinky Boots’ for $1.25M

“True Colors” singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper is selling her Stamford, Connecticut home for $1.25 million. With three beds and three baths, the home at 250 Saddle Hill Road sits 45 miles outside of Manhattan and measures about 3,900 square feet on 1.58 acres of property. Lauper, who first purchased the home during the 1980s, has written several albums and much of the Broadway musical “Kinky Boots” in its guest house. As the Wall Street Journal reported, the home was renovated with French Country-style touches, seen in the hand-stenciled floral designs and French antique salon doors and bathroom fixtures.
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May 11, 2017

Robert Redford’s former Upper East Side pied-a-terre hits the market for $1.35M

Award-winning actor Robert Redford's former Lenox Hill pied-a-terre has hit the market for $1.35 million, reports the Post. The one-bedroom duplex co-op is located in a limestone mansion at 47 East 67th Street, between Madison and Park Avenues. Redford owned the newly renovated pad in the 1980s, and it now boasts plenty of space with a chef's kitchen, double-height ceilings with massive windows, and a woodburning fireplace.
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