The crowning unit at the former Stanhope Hotel on Fifth Avenue, which developers converted to a ritzy condop a decade ago, has hit the market for $65 million.
Seller Claude Becker Wasserstein, an ex-wife of the late billionaire financier Bruce Wasserstein, is selling the duplex penthouse for $30 million more than she paid for the raw space in 2008, shortly before their divorce, according to property records. At its new price, the home is asking $9,285 per square foot, according to The Real Deal, which first reported the listing.
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Ms. Becker Wasserstein, a former CBS producer, had the unfinished unit transformed into an 11-room spread with five bedrooms and 5,000 square feet of outdoor space. Designer Madison Cox turned the balconies, which overlook the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Central Park, into gardens in the sky, with climbing roses and "very convincing" artificial grass, according to a 2011 interview with the owner in Vogue magazine.
The lushly decorated terraces give every room in the 7,067-square-foot penthouse "leafy outlooks," according to the co-listing with Sotheby’s International Realty and Brown Harris Stevens. Listing agents for the property did not immediately return requests for comment.
A 38-foot great room overlooking Fifth Avenue leads into a dining room with a wood-burning fireplace. At the other side of the living room is a wood-paneled library with a large, north-facing bay window, images of the home show. The chef’s kitchen has an adjoining outdoor herb garden and grill.
The five bedrooms each have their own bathroom, including two off the second-level master bedroom.
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Despite the grandeur, Ms. Becker Wasserstein told Vogue that she meant the home to be a "fun place where the kids can feel good, and it’s not too serious." That can be seen in romantic outdoor greenery and some of the whimsical wallpapers and furnishings.
She bought the space for $34.759 million under a limited liability company, CJD Home, named for first initials of her and the two sons she had with Wasserstein, according to property records. Her blank-slate of a purchase in 2008 is still the most expensive apartment to have ever sold in the 26-unit building, according to sales records.