Quote:
Originally Posted by
Manton 
$180 million for one (admittedly very nice) attached row house? I don't think there is a single residential property in Manhattan that ever sold for even half that much.
That's not even close to a truly spectacular house by London standards. A comp in New York would be a 25' brownstone (not a beux arts mansion) somewhere between Madison and Lex in the 80s or 90s. I don't think you could even get $20 mil for one of those. $180?
I did a quick reality check and found a really grand beaux arts mansion on 68th for $40 mil. That's a much nicer house than the Belgravia terrace house above.
When did London become 15x more expensive than New York?
Indeed. My richest friend owns two massive townhouses on 17th and 8th ave (next door, six stories, 8 bedrooms each, massive living room, massive kitchen, a nice roof, a private garage like in the suburbs [!!!]) and they only go for about 40-50 mill each last he asked his parents. A penthouse on Broom st. and the river with 6 bedrooms went four about 30 mill according to another friend who lives in one. On Chambers and west broadway a penthouse is only in the 20's. And though the people I knew who lived in the UES have all moved out, i recall a 4 bedroomer in the 60's went for something in the low 20's high 10's.
These neighborhoods are all where Wall St's kings live and I fail to see why America's socialites and the Sachs "fat cats'" residences are so much cheaper than their English counterparts'.