Here's a theory about the new trend in downtown condo sales: everyone wants apartments that look like prewar Upper East Side pads, minus the Upper East Side. That's the Journal's argument for why buildings like 18 Gramercy Park?where Leslie Alexander paid $42 million for a duplex penthouse this year?are selling so well, while buyers have lost some affection for the downtown standard, the glassy tower.
The Journal turns its attention to, yep, Walker Tower as an example of a downtown building with that uptown feel, and there are some stats to bear that out. An unidentified buyer has signed a contract to combine two Walker Tower penthouses for $34 million. The priciest penthouse in the building is now asking $55 million, up from its original $50 million, though $5M extra probably won't make much of a difference to a buyer at that level.
West Village condo conversion The Abingdon serves as another downtown success story, and there, just two condos remain for sale. One is the model unit, taxidermic fox and all, and the other is the "mansion" with separate entrance, which clocks in at 9,615 square feet and hasn't even officially hit the market. The price listed in building offering documents is $25 million.
· In Manhattan, Downtown Looks Up [WSJ]
· Walker Tower coverage [Curbed]
· Abingdon coverage [Curbed]
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