Manhattan Luxury Homeowners Find Key to Sale Is Accepting a Loss

(Bloomberg) -- Manhattan's priciest apartment contracts last week had one thing in common: The sellers lost money.

The biggest pending deal was at 551 W. 21st St., where two units last listed for a combined $26 million found a buyer after three years on and off the market, according to a report by brokerage Olshan Realty. The owner, who acquired the apartments at the Foster + Partners-designed tower as an investment, paid $31.3 million for them in 2016, and tried selling them the following year for $40 million.

While the final sale price won't be known until the deal closes, the lower asking price suggests the seller will realize a loss of at least 17%.

Owners who bought at the peak of Manhattan's luxury condo frenzy just a few years ago are seeing their asset values erode amid a glut of unsold units. Overseas investors, once a reliable source of purchases, have all but disappeared, leaving well-heeled locals to sort through the inventory in search of bargains. Resellers who find takers for their apartments are those willing to accept a lower price than what they hoped for.

“These particular sellers didn't want to wait the market out,” said Donna Olshan, president of the brokerage that bears her name. “They have no interest in keeping their money parked in New York if they're not using the asset or if the asset isn't giving a return.”

Last week's second-priciest deal was at 80 Columbus Circle, for a 74th-story condo with six bedrooms, most recently listed at $25 million, Olshan said.

The seller had combined two apartments in the tower: one purchased from football superstar Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bundchen in 2011 for $17.5 million, and the next-door unit bought in 2014 for $18 million.

In both of the week's largest contracts, the buyers are New Yorkers, according to Olshan's report.

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