Walk-ups are generally at the extremely low-end of the real estate market, and for good reason. Stairs are evil! Sure, they can get you to and from different floors, but they can also cause you to slip while carrying a bowl or soup, or make your legs tired if there are a lot of them. Having stairs inside one's apartment, however, is extremely desirable, so while the poor are forced to walk up stairs all the time, the rich pay millions for that very privilege. The middle and upper-middle classes just spend lots of time in elevators. We can't make sense of the world, but what we can do is offer a list of our ten favorite staircases in the city. If you're looking to add to your stair collection, all but one of these places are currently on the market.
10) The staircase in 300 West 14th Street #2024 is pretty sleek. Although it's difficult to tell from the picture, those steps are apparently limestone.
9) The floating staircase in the Trump International's only duplex is made of stainless steel and glass. It's certainly eye-catching, which is saying a lot when it's sharing a room with that zebra-patterned chair.
8) Even though Phil Galfond's slide isn't technically stairs, it's in the stairs family. It's more stairs than an elevator, less stairs than an escalator. Say, there's an idea—somebody should get an escalator in his/her apartment.
7) You don't see too many gated staircases. In fact, this cantilevered steel staircase in the newly renovated penthouse in 362 Broadway is the only one we can think of. We're not sure how we feel about the gate, but the staircase itself is pretty cool.
6) The marble staircase in the much-pricechopped 22 East 71st Street is notable for its ornate bannister and for the fact that its as wide as most Manhattan kitchens.
5) The 6-floor spiral staircase at 120 East 70th Street is awesome, but it's making us kind of dizzy.
4) The skylit staircase is one of many highlights in 142 Duane Street. We're starting to notice a trend—the cooler the staircase, the more hazardous it would be to walk down it wearing socks.
3) Another skylit staircase, this one in 131 East 64th Street (currently for sale for $21,500,00), takes the number three spot due to its interesting curves, beautiful wood, and slim metal bannister.
2) We had to include one of our all-time favorites, the floating limestone staircase in M. Night Shyamalan's 45 Walker Street penthouse. The twist? He sold the place two months ago.
1) People don't seem to be crazy about Brooklyn's most expensive penthouse, but still, it's hard to argue against twin glass spiral staircases leading to a grand piano. (Or is it?)
?Jeremiah Budin
· Other Top Ten Lists [Curbed]
· Additional Staircase Coverage [Curbed National]
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