Is This $100 Million Penthouse Really the City’s Most Expensive Apartment Ever?

Daaaaamn. Photo: Courtesy of Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate

If your jaw has yet to rise from recent news that an 8,000-square-foot triplex in the CitySpire building on West 56th Street is asking a can't-even-imagine $100 million, we're not surprised. But consider this: It's not exactly the most expensive apartment this city has ever seen. On a price-per-square-foot basis, it's actually less spendy than penthouse 20 at 15 Central Park West, which sold in February for its full asking, $88 million. That translates to $13,048 per square foot. The West 56th Street listing, by comparison, is asking $12,500 per square foot.

And though the West 56th Street apartment is sumptuous — see more photos here — it's worth noting that it's only asking nine digits. It hasn't gotten it yet. The penthouse at the Christian de Portzamparc–designed One57 is supposedly in contract for between $90 million and $100 million and may reign supreme as the most expensive apartment when the dust settles.

So, is the $100 million asking price realistic for this new arrival on the market? Real estate database firm's vice-president of research, Sofia Song, says it's hard to say. "For the luxury market? I don't know. This is a whole other ballgame. It doesn't abide by market physics. This market has few constraints besides what's available right now." Then again, she adds: "Whether it's realistic or not, does it really matter? It really only matters to the people who can afford it."