May 4th 2012
The New York Times
A full-floor apartment at 1030 Fifth Avenue that sold for $31.5 million was the biggest sale of the week, according to city records.
The sale of the six-bedroom apartment, on the ninth floor, is also evidence that the wealthiest buyers still want to live in spacious prewar co-ops, despite a recent flurry of astronomical prices in luxury condominium buildings like 15 Central Park West and the Plaza.
In fact, the buyers at 1030 Fifth — Zachary Jared Schreiber, a managing director of Duquesne Capital Management, and his wife, Lori — are moving from a 33rd-floor condo at 15 Central Park West. They were represented by Kyle W. Blackmon, an agent at Brown Harris Stevens.
The seller was George S. Blumenthal, a founder of Cellular Communications, who bought the apartment in 1995 for $5.7 million, according to city records.
Bonnie Chajet, the Warburg Realty vice president who represented the seller, said a lack of large apartments was driving up all prices.
But, Ms. Chajet said: “I think that the condo buyer and the co-op buyer are not really aligned. There are some people who say, ‘Just show me condos.’ ” And, conversely, others who really want the kind of elegance that comes with prewar construction — properties that tend to be co-ops.
Of course, that prewar elegance comes with the scrutiny of a co-op board. So it might be a heady feeling to know that not only can you afford a home at a prestigious address like 15 Central Park West but you are also deemed worthy by your peers of calling their building at 1030 Fifth Avenue home.
Big Ticket includes closed sales from the previous week, ending Wednesday.