The news broke mid-December last year that someone dropped $88 million on the penthouse of 15 Central Park, but the sale didn't close until February of this year, so it, officially, was the biggest sale of the year.

Central Park views = big sales. The second biggest sale came at the Ritz, where the duplex penthouse fetched $70 million in May, after 67 days on the market.

Denice Rich's 20-room penthouse at 785 Fifth Avenue sold for $11 million less than the asking price, but it was still the third most expensive sale of the year. The place has 7BR/11BA plus a recording studio and home gym.

The Stanford White-designed mansion at 973 Fifth Avenue, in all its 15,225-square-foot glory, sold for $42 million in June. The mansion is jam-packed with Italian Renaissance palazzo style, placed there by Stanford White himself.

The penthouse at 730 Park Avenue inspired a billionaire bidding war, but the place was so secretive that even the brokers wouldn't describe what it looked like. All they would say is that it was a "very, very beautiful listing."

Just last month, an unlisted condo at the Park Laurel sold for $33.5 million. There's no listing and both seller and owner are listed as LLCs, so the closing price and unit number, 29A, are about all we know.

This 25-foot wide mansion at 19 East 82nd Street was hoping to sell for $34.8 million, but it languished on the market. The Cy Twombly art foundation bought it to turn it into an art center. The ground floor already contains an art gallery, but the rest of the house was a 5BR single family residence. Not anymore.

When this unit hit the market, we said the $30 million asking price was steep, but clearly not that steep for a buyer, as it sold for $27,376,940. It was the last sponsor unit at the Stanhope hotel, and the floor plan is a doozy.

This 7,000-square-foot unit at 998 Fifth Avenue had a quiet start on the market. But it's attempt at trying to find a quiet buyer for $45 million proved fruitless, and it took a hiatus before returning in April for $34 million. It took a bit of a pricechop for the final sale, selling for $27,222,500. What makes the place special? It's designed to resemble a Greek temple.

This 12th floor spread at 907 Fifth Avenue, one of three apartments owned by the late Huguette Clark, sold to a billionaire financier for $25.5 million. There were no photos of the place, but it's a well-known fact that the unit was uninhabited, save for Clark's doll collection, for years.

The most notable thing about the sale of the Rothschild Mansion is the fact that it actually sold! The place spent a mindboggling 2,282 days on the market, and saw an impressive number of PriceUppers and PriceChops. The buyer was an 85-year-old Steel Magnate who, at the time, was trying to sell his 15CPW pad for $95 million.

After just nine days on the market, this 9,000-square-foot unit at 39 East 79th Street sold for the exact asking price of $24.5 million. The sprawling co-op covers two whole floors, of which the brokerbabble says "sheer size of this exceptional property makes you feel as if you are in a fine private European home."

Obviously 15 Central Park West makes more than one appearance on this list. This 3BR/3/5BA sold for just under its $23,950,000 asking price. It's pretty standard with six room, including a formal library or media room, but it does sit near the top of the tower.

Like 15CPW, Huguette Clark's estate had more than one sale on this list. Unit 8W sold just last month for $22.5 million, and that includes a chunk of unit 8E. A full combo had been frowned upon, but this partial combo was approved. 8W was listed for $19 million, so that makes the annexed piece of 8E worth $3.5 million—how much would that buy one at 907 Fifth Avenue?

The copper-clad beauty that is 116 East 70th Street couldn't find a buyer back in 2010, but it was relisted in September and found a taker after a month on the market. Said taker is Susan Weber Soros, ex-wife of billionaire George Soros. The lovely five-bedroom home, has two terraces, a 26-foot deep garden, and a gazebo-like breakfast room. Plus, Woody Allen lives next door.