Is it possible to convert an uptown rental building into a condo?peacefully? So far, the evidence (Apthorp, Sheffield, Manhattan House) points to no. Taking another stab at the age-old question is rebounding developer Harry Macklowe, who is in contract to buy rental building 150 East 72nd Street, according to the Post. The plan? Convert the building?which already has just 34 sizable, 2,500+-square-foot apartments?to condos. There's just one problem: the two rent-controlled and six rent-stabilized tenants, among them famed real estate broker Alice Mason. Mason pays only $2,089/month for the 2,043-square-foot apartment in which she hosted her celebrated dinner parties, and she tells the Post she just signed her new lease. (Rents for non-rent-regulated units are significantly higher.) Since she's now retired, we're guessing she doesn't meet the deregulation threshold. Plus, as she tells the Post, if she bought, "The maintenance alone...would be more than my rent." Spoken like a true broker-to-the-stars!
· It's Mason vs. Macklowe [NYP]
· Alice Mason coverage [Curbed]
Filed under:
Loading comments...