Got a spare quarter of a billion dollars lying around? Here's an apartment for you.

[progressoid]

Dec 20, 2022
Today Architectural Digest brings you high above Manhattan to tour the ultra-luxurious penthouse at Central Park Tower on West 57th street, the highest residential home on the planet.

Soaring over 1,400 feet above New York, the triplex is currently on the market for $250,000,000. With 7 bedrooms, 11 bathrooms, 2 full kitchens and a private ballroom to go along with world-class amenities, it only takes a quarter of a billion dollars to own the crown jewel of Billionaire's Row.

[ProfessorGAC]

1. That Place Is 17,500 Square Feet

$14,285 per square foot. That would make our house cost $24 million.
No matter how much money one has that's stupidly expensive.

[hlthe2b]

2. Honestly, I feel a bit nauseated at the extravagance albeit it is a bit fascinating.

[hedda_foil]

6. Every time he touches anything I cringe at the fingerprints that will have to be cleaned😣

I'm A peasant at heart apparently.

[hlthe2b]

7. Yes... if you were not already OCD, all that glass & gleaming stainless, marble...

would certainly make you so.

I have to also wonder if the thought of another 911 event might not haunt you a bit in that record-setting tall building.

[Retrograde]

19. That went through my mind as well

Nothing says target like a huge, isolated building that dwarfs everything around it. Although elevator malfunctions are more likely (you don't think the buildings owners would skimp on things like quality, safety, and maintenance, do you?)

[tblue37]

58. I'm acrophobic anyway, and I couldn't help thinking of how hard it would be to get to safety if

something happened.

[Irish_Dem]

18. There must be hot and cold running servants who clean constantly.

[LakeArenal]

3. How's that trickle down stuff working?

Money clog in Penthouse 1……

[bronxiteforever]

4. I couldn't buy this. I lost out to this guy

[lame54]

5. I'd trade in twitter for a 172 of those

[Chainfire]

8. I wouldn't let my dog live in a dump like that...

I wonder if it has an open balcony so that the owners can piss down on the little folk.

[chowder66]

9. I would be miserable in there. No trees right outside the window plus vertigo.

But congrats to whoever buys it.

[GoodRaisin]

10. Call me old fashioned, but I like living closer to the ground.

Location location location.

[Demovictory9]

37. Me too.

[House of Roberts]

46. I have a single level home, and so does my ex.

I get wobbly looking off a landing halfway up to a second floor.

The eye doctor my ex had do her cataract surgery was on a second floor, and unless I went up or down in the elevator I had trouble.

Funny, since in my 20s I erected CB towers for friends because I had a climbing belt and a gin-pole. I used to work up to fifty feet with no trouble back then.

[GoodRaisin]

49. Wish I was in a single level home.

I still live in my 2 story home and probably will for life or until I can’t. Been here over 30 years. My ex has a one story and I stayed with her while recovering from cervical spine surgery. I get around okay but not perfect and I still need a lower back surgery I’m terrified to get. All the bedrooms unfortunately are on the second floor of the house. I have good days and bad days, on the bad days it’s easiest to go up the stairs “doggy style”. I wanted to buy a stair lift but unfortunately our older son is draining our retirement savings, so until that changes, “woof”.

[EarthFirst]

11. Two kitchens...

In a ‘single family residence’

FFS!

If this isn’t the billionaire flex; I don’t know what is.

Rather disgusting; honestly.

[Irish_Dem]

20. One is for personal family use, the other for the chef and cook staff?

Not that uncommon in upper class homes from what I have read.

[marybourg]

35. Caterer's kitchen, off the ballroom.

[Irish_Dem]

36. Yes exactly.

[progressoid]

21. Pfft. I was in a house in Lincoln Nebraska that had three.

I had to do some work there.
The main kitchen was obscenely large. The second one was downstairs near the pool. That was about the size of my kitchen. The third was a small one off a sitting room - used for grilling and outdoor entertaining.

The house belonged to a mid-forties douche nozzle who inherited his money. He had a family of 5. About 8 years later he built a different house with just one kitchen but it had a golf practice room in the lower level (along with the theater). On one of the wall was a picture of him golfing with Trump.

[Genki Hikari]

40. If they can afford it, many Jewish families have two kitchens

To comply with the requirements of kashrut.

But two kitchens isn't all that rare, even for non-Jewish or less affluent families.

We had two kitchens once at a house my parents rented in the 70s. There was the "main" kitchen upstairs where mom made most of our meals. And then a kitchen downstairs for parties and where we kids hung out, because that floor had our rec room and led right to the lake access. Which was why we used that kitchen for parties. Outside of entertaining, my brothers and I mostly used the "downstairs" kitchen for snacks, drinks and to make sandwiches, boxed mac 'n' cheese, and other stupid stuff like that.

[Chellee]

55. Many Amish families have two kitchens.

They have a regular kitchen for everyday meals, and then they have a summer kitchen that is used for canning. Not much cabinetry, LOTS of prep space. Usually two stoves and two double sinks. Lots of windows for airflow. It gets hot when you're canning.

[jalan48]

12. Can't imagine what the HOA is.

[Irish_Dem]

15. Yearly HOA fee is probably more than most regular houses cost.

[jalan48]

39. Hard to believe, things are way out of whack.

[Irish_Dem]

44. Ye, US wealth has shifted to the top 10%.

[Efilroft Sul]

13. I was expecting to hate it, but I didn't. I love it.

[Yavin4]

14. That's not an apartment. It's a washing machine.

It's for laundering money. Esp. money from Russia.

[Hekate]

64. LOL

[Retrograde]

16. The telescope adds a nice touch

to the decor - it must be there so the owners and guests can literally look down on the masses.

And the ballroom - every residence should have one (although I think you could fit my entire house into it). Overall, though, the decor is "look at me I'm rich but boring". And the building itself is ugly. I think I'll stick with my bungalow.

[Irish_Dem]

23. I like a clean neutral palette like they have, but it is cold and uninteresting.

So many hard, shiny surfaces, so much glass.

It needs to be softened up a bit.

[Irish_Dem]

17. Those soaring ceilings are going to make for cold rooms.

But I guess the heating bill is not an issue.

[progressoid]

24. Yep.

Meanwhile I sit here in my cold house with a small space heater under my desk.

[Irish_Dem]

26. I had a friend with a two story living room.

No matter how much my friend cranked up the heat, it was always cold.

Right most people are wondering what their heating bills are going to look like
after the frigid weather. Even though they didn't turn up the heat as much as needed,
but wore layers and layers of clothing.

[Sympthsical]

27. I can't even imagine

We have 22 foot ceilings in a living room/loft area. We don't even bother turning the furnace or upstairs heater on. We just have little space heaters we use in whatever room we happen to be in at the time. Since they run on our solar, no energy bills. I think if we tried to run central heat on the cold mornings, we'd be paying $600+/month. Newp newp newp. Not today, PG&E.

[Irish_Dem]

28. Yep we cannot even imagine the HOA fees and utility bills.

Along with all the staff needed to clean, cook, etc.

Of course if you can afford this condo, it is all chump change I guess.

[MiniMe]

22. 27 foot ceilings?

I'll leave it for Eloon to buy, not for me.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

54. A house full of echos

Is not a home to me.

[iemanja]

25. I'm mad he didn't show the closets

[Irish_Dem]

29. The closets look like rooms.

High end closets are mirrored rooms with a central seating area to put your shoes on and look
at your clothing.

Make-up mirror with special lighting.

Shoe racks.

Numbered clothing racks.

Hat racks.

Dressers.

Shelving.

[iemanja]

30. That's what I wanted to see

Considering my little closets suck.

[Irish_Dem]

32. I am always fighting with my closet.

Trying to rearrange for more efficient use of space.

Yes I would have liked to see the closets in this place as well.

[Torchlight]

31. I think a hobbit hole would suit me better

just a (little) bit higher inside, though.

[DET]

33. Doesn't Scream 'Cozy'

Looks like a hotel, not a home. Not inviting. I once bought a home because I fell in love with the great room. It was about 30’ x 40’ with a beamed ceiling and six huge picture windows. But we never used it once we moved in. Furniture gets completely swallowed up in a big room, it was always cold, and it just was not welcoming. But at least it didn’t cost A QUARTER BILLION DOLLARS.

[iemanja]

62. It looks a lot like an office block

Less cozy that a hotel.

[nilram]

34. How long does the elevator ride take?

Hate it when I have to waste my time in elevators. Guess I’m not suited to be a billionaire.

[LuckyCharms]

38. Nope. No way.

Here's the thing...even if I had all the money in the world, I would probably still live in my 1700 sq ft home that has a nice yard.

I've put so much meticulous work into my home that I feel pride every time I look at it.

There is nothing in the world that could replace that feeling.

Not that apartment, not money, not anything.

Living in an over-sized apartment with 27 ft. ceilings that was built by someone else would give me no satisfaction whatsoever.

Interesting video though!

[Genki Hikari]

69. I could live in 1700 sf

If the house had only one or two bedrooms. I don't need a bunch of rooms, but I do need big rooms because I freak out in too-small spaces. Severe claustrophobia will do that to a person.

And yet I hate open plan houses. Go figure.

[Emile]

41. Not any place I want to live at!

[Renew Deal]

42. I would take it for a quarter of a thousand

[Genki Hikari]

43. It feels so...cold and sterile

I've nothing against minimalism or a neutral palette, but sometimes these modern decorators take both to extremes.

Actually, I take it back. I do have something against the monotony of modern home decorating. I'm getting so tired of these minimalistic neutrals that I'm at the point of wanting a true mid-century modern home, ca 1955 with pink appliances, turquoise and yellow kitchen cabinets, and mint green bathroom fixtures.

I'm sick to death of the same old look in every stinking home out there now.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

51. I know what you mean

I hate neutral colors. My apartment living room is in rainbows.
And I hate modern minimalist crap.
I like a colorful home with interesting things,and different styles within it like a victorian sitting room,a rustic dining room,an egyptian style kitchen,an art deco living room you get my drift it would look like a different house in every room also I like catwalks and funky little alcoves and niches and zig zag hallways. I hate stairs so it will all be one level, That is what I would do with my house if I had money to have a house also I would have NO lawn,I would have woods,gardens and other landscaped spaces and native plants just no mowing no shitload of yard work and no damn yard with no trees and boring lawn grass.

Here is my rainbow room.

[Scrivener7]

45. What revolting waste.

[IcyPeas]

47. If I had that ballroom I'd use it as a cat rescue and have cat trees and bridges all over the room.

the cats could watch the helicopters outside the windows instead of squirrels.

give me a little cozy cottage near a warm beach. this "residential home" is cold and more like a hotel.

so which Saudi prince will purchase this?

And people thirty stories down
Look like colored currents in the street
A helicopter lands on the Pan Am roof
Like a dragonfly on a tomb

[I_UndergroundPanther]

52. Yeah I'd do the same

A huge catroom and cats everywhere !!❤️❤️❤️😸

[Vinca]

48. Sorry, don't like heights. Don't care much for the decor either.

And, of course, there's that quarter of a billion dollars. If I had that kind of money I could definitely find better uses for it.

[Chellee]

56. Me too.

When he walked towards the window my stomach flipped over. Live there? I couldn't even visit there. I'd be hugging the walls all the time.

What kills me is, those windows open. They had handles. Why? You're not going to get a gentle breeze at that height, so it's not for fresh air. No fireman is rescuing you that way if the building catches on fire. So what's the purpose? Your exit if the stock market crashes? The Russians told the builder they needed the windows to open "just in case?"

[GoodRaisin]

50. Good place to launder ill gotten money.

Anyone who could afford that honestly needs to be paying much higher tax rates.

[Poiuyt]

53. Meh -- if I had that kind of money, I'd rather have an old gothic mansion

more character.

[tblue37]

57. I'll check the couch cushions.

[Mr.Bill]

59. It would make me sick living there

thinking of all the people I could have helped with that amount of money and still had an incredible house for myself. I would prefer a view of the Pacific ocean on the California central coast. Not a distant view of the Atlantic blurred by smog.

[wackadoo wabbit]

60. Tax the rich!

This sort of conspicuous consumption shouldn't exist — especially when there are so many people who are homeless/unhoused.

[niyad]

61. And if the power fails? Does this extravagance have its own helo pad?

[Hekate]

63. Vertigo. I'm getting vertigo & my feet are cramping. I need to breathe into a paper bag or something

Oh my god.

You know what I want to live in? A single story hobbit-home with all woodwork panels and beams. I was taken aback when my teenage grandson told me how much he loves my place because it was hobbit-like — not round, of course, but with the wood. And I looked around and realized that the kid was right, and that was definitely why I fell in love with it at first sight too. Lucky us.

But the “world’s tallest building” is not for me. You couldn’t pay me enough to even visit the damn thing.

[DET]

67. I'm With You

Not sure I’d want a hobbit home, but that thing is scary. I’d be paralyzed by the thought of a terrorist attack or a fire. I was at Windows on the World at the WTC about a year before the planes hit and I had an overwhelming sense of doom. It was terrifying. This place reminds me of that.

[JI7]

65. I feel like I would get freaked out that high with the huge windows

I wonder how much the lower level apartments cost . I might actually prefer that .

But If i had that much money I would actually prefer a nice house with ocean view.

[dalton99a]

66. Developed by Extell Development Company and Shanghai Municipal Investment Group

Central Park Tower was developed by Extell Development Company and Shanghai Municipal Investment Group.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Park_Tower

Shanghai Municipal Investment (Group) Corporation also known as Shanghai Chengtou (Chinese: 上海城投; pinyin: Shànghǎi Chéngtóu) or SMI is a Chinese sovereign wealth fund of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_Municipal_Investment_Group

Yeah, zero affiliation with the Chinese government

[Wingus Dingus]

68. Beautiful and terrifying.

Between Sept. 11 and the Florida condo collapse...nopety nope nope.

[A HERETIC I AM]

70. If I had $250 million to spend on a place to live....

I’d buy 10,000 acres in Montana or Colorado or Florida or Texas. You would REALLY have to love living in a city to even consider dropping that much on that place.

Not to mention those ultra tall, skinny buildings have their own set of unique issues, the least of which is sway in the wind.

Being in that apartment during a high wind event would be very interesting.

But nope, if I had to have a place in Manhattan, I’d rather have a place in The Dakota or another of the iconic building on Central Park West.

[Bryan]

71. Too much caviar, not enough toast

The views of Manhattan are definitely sweet, but where's the dedicated storage for emergency food and water in case the owner gets stuck up there due to power outage/extreme weather/elevator failure?

[llmart]

72. Ugh.

Obscene wealth makes me nauseous unless the wealth is used to help the less fortunate. I look at housing like this from an environmental viewpoint since I'm a rabid environmentalist. How many decent housing units could we build for the homeless or low income families with the amount of money this costs, including the upkeep of it?

As someone else said, give me a little craftsman bungalow on a tree lined street somewhere.

[mnhtnbb]

73. If I had a quarter of a billion $

to spend on housing, I wouldn't spend it all on one place in Manhattan. London, Paris, a Caribbean villa and a mountain chalet in Italy or Switzerland would also be on my shopping list. So, $50 mill tops for a Manhattan apartment in my budget.

But whoever buys that apartment probably already has at least five other homes. Damn.