New York City is one of the most expensive housing markets in the United States, fending off challengers from other US cities like Los Angeles and Miami. Not only that, it has recently been locked in a race with Singapore as the most expensive city internationally to buy or rent a home in. Bottom line is, finding an affordable apartment in New York City is difficult depending on a variety of factors, but it’s easier to find when you’re with Friends. 

Friends, the seminal sitcom about six twenty-somethings navigating the world of 90s New York City, is credited with inventing “The Rachel” (which is back in style as of 2022), and of course, who could forget Ross’ iconic plea “we were on a break!”

But the housing market in New York has never gone on break. Since the early 90s, rents around the city began to trend upward noticeably, continuing through the 2000s. In 2022 it’s estimated that a minimum-wage worker would have to work over 100 hours weekly to afford a one-bedroom apartment.

 

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 So were the 90s really that different? How did Rachel, Ross, Chandler, Phoebe, Monica, and Joey afford their places when they were broke, their jobs were jokes, and of course, their love lives were DOA?

What did the Friends do for work?

One of the most important factors when determining the affordability of a housing situation is the jobs the tenants have and how much of their paychecks they’re able to fork over each month. The Friends had an odd array of jobs that, by today’s metrics, make it difficult to believe they could afford to live in New York at all, let alone with the luxuries afforded to them by their admittedly modest apartments. 

Rachel, for instance, worked as a waitress at Central Perk (now a real-life location) from the first season until “The One Where Rachel Quits” in season 3. She eventually entered the fashion industry, landing a position as a fashion executive at Ralph Lauren while courting another offer from Gucci in Paris in the final season; quite the come-up.

 

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Monica was a chef throughout the series, working her way up through the kitchen until reaching head-chef status. She ended the series as a respected food critic and owner of two prestigious NYC eateries. 

Joey Tribbiani is an actor who, more often than not, is out of work, minus a brief stint playing opposite a robot for the sitcom “Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E.”

Phoebe is similarly in the arts, being a musician and songwriter. She’s also a masseuse and has at times, even resorted to mugging to make a quick buck. 

Chandler and Ross represent the corporate and academic spheres, respectively. Chandler worked as a copywriter for an ad company, while Ross found work as a professor of paleontology, a notoriously controversial and boring profession. 

Some of these jobs make it easier to believe their lives in Greenwich Village, where the show is set, were feasible. Professors in the 90s, for example, were earning, on average, anywhere from $42,000 to $50,000 per year in New York. Adjusted for inflation this would see Ross easily raking in more than $120,000 today, more than enough for a single-bedroom apartment where he lived. As a chef, Monica’s pay would’ve received modest increases throughout the series as she worked her way up the chef ladder from line cook to sous chef to executive. But at the beginning of the show, she was likely not making much more than $10,000 (or $23,000 by today’s standards) yearly.

Phoebe, who also doesn’t live with any of the other friends throughout the show, has a uniquely affordable living situation. After living with and taking care of her grandmother, (played by the late Audra Lindley), it can be assumed that Phoebe inherited her apartment, and life insurance possibly afforded her additional funds to continue living there.

How much rent is too much rent?

When deciding the affordability of a living situation, how much rent is too much to pay? Well, it’s entirely based on your job and salary and desires.

There are a couple of rules that make calculating affordability easy, such as the 40x rule or the 30% rule. Many landlords require that your annual gross income be at least 40 times your monthly rent. For example, to afford a $3000 apartment, you’d have to make approximately $120,000 per year. This may sound like a lot of money, but it helps to account for unforeseen expenses and the cost of other amenities such as gyms.

Another similar rule is the 30% rule which is exactly what it sounds like; allowing for 30% of one’s gross annual income to be paid toward rent. For instance, if one makes $90,000 yearly, following this rule, they should be prepared to spend no more than $27,000 a year, or $2,250 monthly. In Friends, Joey Tribiani spent some time starring in “Days of Our Lives” in a recurring role as Dr. Drake Ramorey, where he would’ve been making something close to $400 to $900 an episode, translating to approximately $230,000 at the end of a 260 episode season. If he was making this amount consistently, Joey could’ve narrowed down his options during “The One Where Joey Moves Out” to apartments with rents at or below $5,750 per month. However, tragically, Dr. Drake Ramorey spent most of his time on the show in a coma following an unfortunate tumble down an elevator shaft.

Additional expenses such as utilities, food, and transportation can be a major drain on funds as well. The cast of friends, for instance, spent somewhere close to $2100 on Central Perk coffee alone throughout the course of the show. These additional funds account for up to 20% of one’s annual income on average. This means that between these additional expenses and rent payments, one could see 50% of their paycheck vanish; spent entirely on the necessities of city living. These percentages are subject to change, and things such as inflation and a volatile economy can cause the percentages paid toward such expenses to skyrocket.

These numbers are in many ways themselves less-than-realistic, as currently, over half of New York renters spend more than 30% of their paychecks paying rent.

Where did the Friends Live?

Friends is set in Greenwich Village in downtown Manhattan. Like many television sets, the apartment does not actually exist. In actuality, the show was largely shot in Burbank, California. Monica’s apartment is what fans commonly refer to as the “Friends” apartment, although there was a season 4 stretch where Chandler and Joey temporarily swapped apartments with her after winning a bet in “The one with the Embryos”. Its exterior shots can be traced back to 90 Bedford Street, a common tourist attraction; however, the apartment’s actual address is different. In the episode “The One With The Invitations”, a wedding invitation is shown which reveals the apartment’s in-world address to be 495 Grove Street, Greenwich.

Greenwich is currently a relatively expensive neighborhood to rent in, a 2-bedroom averaging around $5,500 monthly. This is similarly a good guess at what the price of the Friends’ condo would cost today. 

The Friends Apartment Building

The building was a pre-war walkup, meaning there’s no elevator, which would have come in handy in “The One With The Cop” and its pivotal couch-moving sequence. The apartment and its affordability actually come up as issues in the plot of the show in an episode called “The One with the Ballroom Dancing”. In the episode, it is revealed that the apartment actually originally belonged to Monica and Ross’ grandmother, who lived there before rent regulation in the 1940s. The episode’s plot surrounds Monica attempting to trick or otherwise convince her landlord to let her sublet the apartment from her very-much-deceased grandmother, keeping her stabilized rent payments. This resulted in Monica being able to afford the apartment by keeping payments astronomically low. How low were these payments? According to the show, about $200 a month! Adjusted for inflation, this means that she was only paying about $450 a month by today’s standards!

This arrangement means that the Friends apartment, despite its size and location, was uniquely affordable for Monica and the gang, even if it was only possible through some shady backroom dealings (or shady Ballroom dealings if you know the episode.) Rachel, as a recently estranged daughter of a wealthy family, is likely not paying rent for the majority of the time she’s staying with Monica, which wouldn’t be a problem if payments were so low. Chandler and Joey live in a significantly smaller space, which is possibly similarly rent-controlled. However, Chandler’s relatively non-descript corporate job seems capable of paying the bills, even when Joey is enduring one of the (many) dry spells in his acting career. 

Is the Friends Apartment Realistic?

Yes and No. Under the circumstances of the show, Monica’s grandmother dying and the subsequent finessing of their landlord would allow them to live there indefinitely. Chandler and Joey’s apartment is similarly affordable, while Ross and Phoebe’s arrangements are also feasible. But is the apartment is “realistic,” as in, does it exist in real life? In this case, the short answer is no. Even if the apartment existed, it would likely not be as large and spacious as the one featured in the show.

Looking at Greenwich Village now, we can find some similar listings, such as this 2 Bedroom 2 bathroom at 231 Sullivan Street, which is newly renovated and features an open kitchen and floor plan, something similar to Monica’s iconic pad. The floor plan, however is still significantly smaller than the Friends apartment, but a lot of this can be attributed to it being a television set over an actual building. 

 

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 Production designer John Shaffner designed and helped to build the set along with his partner, Joe Stewart. The two sought to create a set that would “feel as comforting to the viewer as their own home.” Greg Grande, another designer of the set, said of the space that he wanted “a whole new kind of eclectic taste with a flea-market, whimsical, anything-goes style”, which resulted in the creative mish-mash of decor which appears on the screen.

The point is the apartments on Friends weren’t built for people to live in, they were designed to be visually and aesthetically pleasing while remaining functional for television filming. Most television and film sets are just that, sets, superficial facsimiles of actual or imagined locations. There’s no ‘fourth wall’ behind where the cameras sat most of the time, and therefore the apartment’s design and dimensions are largely inflated, something that’s more obvious when viewing behind-the-scenes images of the set. But Friends was never about being realistic. In many ways, it’s a fantasy about city living in the same vein as Sex and The City or Seinfeld. So while in some ways, Monica, Joey, Ross, Rachel, Phoebe, and Joey’s lives in the early 90s were absolutely possible, they weren’t realistic by any standards.

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Staten Island Sins

Staten Island, the forgotten borough, has had more than its fair share of fascinating cases of true-crime horror, from The Nimer Murders to the murder spree of Salvatore Perrone. But perhaps no name is as famous or feared as that of convicted kidnapper Andre Rand, who is currently serving several consecutive life sentences for several murders and kidnappings in the city. The borough’s most notorious serial killer, in 2004, he was convicted of abducting Holly Ann Huges from her Port Richmond neighborhood on the East Shore in the early 80s. But his terrible misdeeds stretched back earlier, all the way to 1972 with the disappearance of at least six other people, although he was never formally charged for their disappearance. 

In August 1987, the body of a 12-year-old Westerleigh resident, Jennifer Schweiger, was found in a shallow grave on the grounds of what is now the College of Staten Island; but the jury only convicted him on kidnapping charges, not murder.

It’s unknown how many more victims Rand has, and he shows very little remorse for his actions. Rand is a prolific writer known for sending out several Mother’s Day missives “to all the ladies of Staten Island who supported ‘prosecutorial vincitvness’ against an innocent person.’  In 2001, while in prison, he released a series of letters to The Advance, a newspaper, the earliest of which was written back in 1994. The letters include an argument against nuclear proliferation, autobiographical stories of his youth, and a detailed sketch of a small aircraft. The quiet neighborhood where Rand lived in what is now West Brighton only blocks away from the famous Staten Island Zoo, with listings such as this 3 Bedroom on Marion Street only a few minutes walk away from Rand’s previous home.

Bad Clams in Manhattan

Located at 129 Mulberry Street, Umberto’s Clam House in Little Italy was the location of one of the most sensational assassinations of a mob boss, when Joey “Crazy Joe” Gallo was murdered only weeks after getting married. After celebrating his birthday with his wife, his sister, child, and bodyguard at the Copacabana, Gallo and his entourage were found dining at the Clam House, Joey ordered the shrimp and scungilli salad. While they ate, a quartet of gunmen arrived and open fire at the family, fatally wounding Gallo but not before they were able to turn the butcher table on its side to provide shielding for the rest of his family. Gallo stumbled to the front door, cursing at the gunmen as they fled before collapsing into a puddle of his own blood in the street: a scene straight out of any mafia movie. 

This was a particularly brazen attack as the hit had been conducted while Gallo was celebrating his birthday and was with his family at the time, and was a marked escalation in the conflict between the Five Families of New York. “Crazy Joe” had started a war against his bosses for control of the family and paid for it with his life. His death started another war when his crew broke off from the rest of the Colombo Family, leading to a series of ten gangland slayings before they eventually rejoined, making it one of the bloodiest mafia wars in the city’s history. 

The restaurant had only been open for two months before the 1972 hit, but Umberto’s Clam House is still open, serving as a historical landmark and tourist attraction for true-crime fans, mafia aficionados, and clam lovers alike. Want to live where the mafia used to frequent? Right around the corner is 181 Hester Street, where you can snap up a 1 bedroom apartment and feel like the mob boss that you are.

The Red Circle Slayer of Queens 

The Red Circle Slayer terrorized the quiet community of Hollis Hills in Queens, New York, throughout the late 1920s and early 30s, and although a suspect is currently behind bars, no one is sure if it’s the right man. The popular patch of woods where the first attacks took place was filled with booze, used condoms, and underwear; a popular spot for young lovers at the time. The killer attacked young couples and lovers who found themselves within his unfortunate gaze, often while out “necking” or making out in their cars. His first victims were Lewis Weiss, 20, a clerk at a steel company, and Frances Hajek,19, who worked at her family’s bakery.

Separate similar incidents earlier in the decade were attributed to the 3X Murderer who taunted police and had victims near the site of the Red Circle slayings, although this did nothing but murky the waters of a new, potentially dangerous killer on the loose. 

Due to a number of bad leads, unreliable witnesses, and false admissions of guilt, the killer, who was known for placing a red circle painted in lipstick on the foreheads of victims, has never been confirmed. But in 1938, Walter Wiley, a career criminal with a long rap sheet, could not come up with an alibi for the night of Hajek’s death. While a jury was ultimately unable to indict Wiley on murder charges, he was put behind bars for unrelated robberies and spent 40 years behind bars, effectively ending the Red Circle Slayer’s reign. Locals, although, were less reassured; perhaps there’s a serial killer living amongst the quiet Queens community after all these years. For those amateur sleuths or those who simply want to do a little necking in a picturesque New York neighborhood, this three-bedroom, second-floor apartment is in a beautiful, safe location, but only minutes away from the Red Circle site.

The Hole of Brooklyn

John Gotti, or the Teflon Don, is one of the most famous names in popular media when it comes to the Italian Mafia. Before passing away in prison at the age of 61 while serving a life sentence, he was the leader of one of the most notorious crime families in New York, the Gambinos. After seizing power by ordering the murder of Paul Castellano, who was the head of the family at the time, he became a famous public figure. Gotti was known for his expensive taste and less-than-scrupulous business practices, earning him an additional nickname; the Dapper Don. But the Dapper Don had some dark secrets, not including the bodies that his “operations” would inevitably pile up; and he needed a place to dump them. Enter The Hole.

This ten-block stretch between East New York and Howard Beach is directly on the border of Brooklyn and Queens, and today is almost unrecognizable as “New York City” from a traditional standpoint. The neighborhood is at a lower elevation than the surrounding area, resulting in a noticeable dip, earning it its name. The Hole is also named so for another reason, as it was one of the largest mass graveyards for the mob, and a personal favorite of John Gotti. Residents of The Hole have recovered so many bodies from the area that they can be used as landmarks, and they continue to be found even as recently as 2004 when the bodies of Dominick “Big Trin” Trinchera and Phillip “Philly Lucky” Giaccone were exhumed. THe area now serves as a base for a branch of the Federation of Black Cowboys. While living in The Hole is a bit risky, the area frequently floods due to its low elevation; those who want to live near this grim reminder of mob history will be happy to know there are many listings near the neighborhood, such as this fully furnished 2 bedroom duplex only blocks away from where bodies were found.

The Son of Sam in The Bronx

David Berkowitz, also known as the Son of Sam, lived at 35 Pine St, Yonkers NY after being brought up in the Bronx. After the death of his adoptive mother, he became a loner before joining the army in 1971, distinguishing himself as a marksman. After his return to New York he worked as a security guard, all while being haunted by the voices in his head, demons he would later claim, who were spurning him on toward murder. He took his first victims in 1975 on Christmas Eve, when he attacked a young Michelle Foreman and another unidentified woman with a hunting knife. Foreman was 15 years old at the time. Berkowitz moved to Yonkers in 1976, where the demons in his head took the form of the neighborhood dogs and eventually Sam’s neighbors themselves; it wasn’t long before he continued his spree.

With victims in four of the five boroughs, not including Staten Island, the entirety of New York felt the terror of the .44-caliber killer, so named because of the bullets used to tie the murders to a single killer.

After sending a series of letters out to previous landlords, neighbors, and other affiliates, local police were alerted to a potential candidate for The Son of Sam and reported it to the NYPD’s special Omega Task Force tasked with nabbing the killer, but these tips ultimately went unheeded because of the sheer number of false leads. It wasn’t until an eyewitness came forward to report that she’d seen Berkowitz with a gun only moments before she heard gunshots in Brooklyn that he was finally apprehended by the police.

When his Yonkers apartment was searched, they found satanic graffiti drawn on the walls and diaries detailing over 1,400 arsons he was also allegedly responsible for. Berkowitz ultimately rescinded his claims of demonic influence and stated he instead was lashing out in anger at a world he felt had rejected him. True crime fans who want to see and hear the demons that drove Berkowitz mad can find availabilities at the 42 Pine Street apartments just a few doors down from his Pine St resident, though his building is now privately owned, dark tourists aren’t guaranteed welcome.

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Career/Life Highlights 

In Arnault’s early career, he heard the business Boussac Saint-Frères empire, a textile and retail conglomerate that owned Christian Dior, was looking for someone to take over. Skipping the details, Arnault ultimately bought Boussac, and when he did, he laid off over 9,000 employees in the first 2 years, earning him the early nickname “the Terminator.” 

Unlike fellow billionaire Elon Musk, who created his businesses from nothing but an idea, growing them into the empires that made him the former richest man in the world, Arnault has a great eye for fashion and the luxury industry mixed with a shrewd business acumen. In fact Ye said at one point in time that Arnault is one of his heroes and when asked about his feud with Drake at that time, that he thinks more about “Arnauld than Drake”. This comes even if he may harbor ill feelings towards Arnault after Virgil Abloh received a position at Louis Vuitton over Ye. 

Arnault uses his aggressive style and savvy business sense to take over any business he chooses where an opportunity may lie. And boy does he choose well, only going after luxury brands he feels are up to the extremely high standards of LVMH. He typically goes after established luxury brands that have already proven to be timeless, watching for the opportunity to take the largest majority in stock holdings. 

He has been accused of using his influence in various instances, as he is friends with the French President – and was friends with the previous French President, as well. While inspired by Warren Buffett and Steve Jobs, Arnauld has received criticism for some of his business practices. In 2017 it was discovered that his large factories for Louis Vuitton shoes were in Romania, where the workforce is cheap. This became a problem due to the Louis Vuitton brand’s claim to value its heritage and operate in Italy using an Italian workforce. However, a spokesperson for LVMH rejected the claim.

Arnault also applied for citizenship in Belgium, presumably to avoid taxes, although when that was questioned, he dropped the process – making the whole thing even more suspicious. 

The man himself is soft-spoken, polite, cultured – just as you would expect one of the top richest people on earth to be. Arnault is a trained classical pianist and an avid art collector, with works in his personal collection by Andy Warhol, Picasso and countless others. He lives a life of pure luxury as he owns a private island that is “invitation only”, a private luxury yacht and some fabulous real estate – which we will get to, of course

Bernard Arnault’s Real Estate Portfolio

And now, it’s time to get to the section we’ve all been waiting for – Bernard Arnault’s real estate! It is truly a massive and impressive portfolio, fit for the richest man in the world, but only in cost. People have reacted before that the portfolio could be larger, but even still, he has too many homes to live in!

Keep in mind he owns jets (well, before he sold them so people on Twitter wouldn’t track him), luxury cars, and one of the largest yachts in the world. The yacht is a 150-foot superyacht that cost $150 million, has a glass-bottomed pool, an outdoor cinema theatre and jacuzzi, among countless other guilty pleasures.

Like many of the ultra-wealthy, Arnault is private, so it is rare to see the insides of his homes, and there is scant information about the estates, but let’s start with Arnault’s main residence.

Bernard Arnault’s French Real Estate

Arnault’s castle is surrounded by the vineyards of Bordeaux, France, and is over 150 years old. Having been in the family since 1998, the property covers 41 hectares. 

Arnault owns 25 wineries around the world, one of which is in Burgundy which is almost 25 acres large that he purchased for 10 million euros.

In the French Alps, Bernard’s Cheval Blanc is a glamorous hotel used for both business and personal matters. There are 34 rooms in the luxury hotel, a private chalet, a penthouse, a heated swimming pool, a jacuzzi, and fitness center. 

Arnault additionally owns château Saint-Rémy-des-Landes in  Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines and a villa in St. Tropez.

Bernard Arnault’s United States Real Estate

Arnault owns 5 homes in Beverly Hills, CA. right here in the USA, totaling $125 million. Two are located in the Trousdale Estates neighborhood, while another two are also right next to each other on the infamous Bird Streets. 

Arnault reportedly bought one of those homes in the Trousdale Estates neighborhood of Beverly Hills for $30 million in 2018, to complement a neighboring parcel in 2016 for $32.5 million. It’s 6,400 ft², and he was building a house on the combined 2.84 acres. 

It may be possible to stay in one of his “properties” as LVMH’s Hotel Cheval Blanc Beverly Hills, is planned for Rodeo Drive and could receive final city council approval soon.

Other Notable Arnault Real Estate

In 2000, Arnault purchased a 318-acre plot of land called Lyn Park, that is 30 kilometers North of London, on which he built a luxury villa of 4,300 m2.

Lastly, Renault owns Indigo, an entire island he purchased for $35 million located in the Bahamas. The island is 133 acres, and guests can only access it with a private invitation. Once again, it must be nice to be so exclusive. 

Featured image: Jérémy Barande /Ecole polytechnique Université Paris-Saclay/CC BY-SA 2.0

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The socialite and workaholic, who at one point served as the vice president for interior design for the Trump Organization, had an eye for detail and decorated her home accordingly. Throughout her time in the home, she upgraded the building into a decor-filled, vibrant space, with something to marvel at in every room. 

While Ms. Trump owned several properties worldwide, her son Eric describes the townhouse as her favorite, saying, “she was so comfortable there…it was the last possession in the world she would ever have gotten rid of.”

Around the Property 

Built in 1879, Ms. Trump’s luxurious property spanned over 8,725 square feet with an additional 700 square feet of outdoor space. Full of personality, this home boasts luxurious features like a columned facade and mansard roof, gold and black doors, and Italian crystal chandeliers. 

Ms. Trump transformed the property from a dentist’s office into a lavish estate, welcoming guests into the vibrant red-carpeted and wallpapered entryway with a spiral staircase, gold crown molding, and a gallery. 

The over-the-top design choices run throughout the remainder of the six-story home. From a Versaille-inspired dining room to the gold-embossed fireplace in the living room, Ms. Trump seemingly spared no expense to create her version of an oasis. 

The third floor hosts the primary suite, with a south-facing bedroom featuring a restored mural and French doors that lead onto a private terrace. The ensuite bathroom makes a statement with copious amounts of pink Onyx marble, gold hardware, an oversized tub, mirrored vanity, and a separate closet. 

1 of 7

Listed as a co-exclusive between Adam Modlin of The Modlin Group and Roger Erickson of Douglis Elliman, this property has a cap rate of 0.19%. Complete with many bedrooms and spaces, new owners have plenty of room to alter the space to their liking. 

The building resides on one of Mahattan’s most coveted blocks, East 64th Street, between 5th and Madison Avenue. Part of the Upper East Side Historic District, this block boasts some of the borough’s most beautiful homes. Homeowners here have quick access to city favorites like Central Park, the Metropolitan Art Museum, and countless dining and shopping opportunities. 

“It’s like being between Boardwalk and Park Place on a Monopoly board,” Mr. Modlin said.

Ms. Trump’s Life in the Townhouse 

After her public divorce from Donald Trump, Ivana acquired custody of their three children, Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric. She raised them in their Manhattan home and described their upbringing throughout her novel Raising Trump. Crediting herself to raising the three children, Ms. Trump did so in the comfort of their meticulously-designed palace. 

After their divorce finalized in 1992, Ivana received several million dollars, which she used to purchase the townhouse. Of the home, she said, “my home reflects my style perfectly.” Post-divorce, she entered other marriages, raised the children, and strived to build her businesses. Ms. Trump created a clothing and jewelry business, appeared on daytime talk shows, performed in movies, and wrote several books. 

It was in the townhouse where Ms. Trump spent the end of her life, passing in the home at the beginning of July. 

Ivana Trump’s Real Estate Portfolio 

The Manhattan home was not Ms. Trump’s only real estate holding. Throughout her life, she acquired several properties across the country. There are rumors that she also held onto properties in France and London. 

Greenwich, CT Mansion

Donald Trump gave the couple’s first mansions to Ivana in the divorce, which she sold in 1998 for $15 million. The property, located at 21 Vista Drive, has entered and exited the real estate market several times since Ms. Trump’s transaction. Past owners completed upgrades and modified the home but have remained unsuccessful in their attempts to sell the property. Currently, the home sits on the market at $29.9 million. With 5.8 acres and over 750 feet of shoreline, there is much to see in this spacious Greenwich mansion. 

Palm Beach, FL Vacation Home 

Ms. Trump purchased the home in 1994 and sold it 20 years later in 2014 for $16.6 million. 102 Jungle Road consists of a sizeable Spanish-Mediterranean mansion that achieved landmark status in 1990, and in 2012 the American Institute of Architects put it on the Top 100 list of architecturally significant buildings in Florida. 

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On September 8th, 2022 Queen Elizabeth II passed away at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, making history as Britain’s longest reigning monarch. Located in the Scottish highlands, the castle is of great significance to the Royal Family, serving as a primary location for family vacations in the summers.

Prince William and Prince Harry were both at the Balmoral Castle when they learned of their mother’s death in 1997. Princess Eugenie previously stated that her “Granny is the most happy there.” After the Queen’s health began to decline late last year, she reportedly moved to the Scottish estate because it made her “feel comfortable.”

By all accounts it seems that Balmoral Castle was a place of solace and respite for the Queen, but it was just one of many lavish properties owned by the Crown. Across the Atlantic on American soil, the Queen reportedly owned 24 residences across some of Manhattan’s most affluent neighborhoods. 

A Closer Look at the Queen’s Lavish NYC Properties

The Queen’s abundant properties are scattered across the Upper East Side, Upper West Side, and Midtown East—several of which offer expansive views of Central Park. Some of the Queen’s Upper West Side lofts are located on the upscale streets of West 89th and West 71st. Her homes in close proximity to Central Park include the Evans Towers, Le Chambord, and the Wakefield.

The Crown’s Midtown properties include a unit at the Dag Hammarskjold Tower and three apartments at the International Plaza, both of which are located near the United Nations. Given the Royal Family’s hush-hush policy on the purpose of their real estate, it’s not clear what purpose these many properties served. Although the apartments close to the UN were likely residences for diplomats representing the Commonwealth of Nations. 

Upper East Side

Evans Tower

The Queen seemed to be a fan of the Evans Tower, having owned a total of 5 units in this full-service, 36-story luxury condominium. Located west of Third Avenue on 171 East 84th Street, the modern structure offers outstanding services and facilities; including a rooftop health club and lounge with skyline views as well as an indoor atrium swimming pool with a retractable dome. The lux building also has two sundecks for residents to enjoy in the warmer months. 

Le Chambord

Owning 4 units in this modern, high-rise condominium, the Queen seemed to be equally as enchanted with Le Chambord. Located in the heart of the Upper East Side on 350 East 72nd Street, this boutique residence only has two units per floor. The 22-story building is within walking distance of several international, 5-star restaurants such as Mission Ceviche, Oda House, and Hui. 

The Wakefield

The post-war building has a total of 68 apartments across 13 floors. The Queen owned two condos in this unique, red-brick condominium located in the neighborhood of Yorkville. Most of the Wakefield apartments on the market sport recently renovated kitchens complete with stainless steel appliances, marble countertops, and efficiently designed cabinetry, such as the 4-bed flat currently up for rent. 

Upper West Side

The Lincoln Park Condo

Conveniently located in the heart of the Upper West Side, the Lincoln Park Condo stands 16 stories high and has 58 units in total. Each floor has a maximum of just 4 units, allowing for both privacy and ample living space in each one of its units. The doorman condominium sits just a few blocks South of the Beacon Theater and a few blocks up from the Vanguard Wine Bar. The Queen owned just one unit here. 

113 West 89th Street 

The Queen owned 3 units at this intimate, 5-story building located just one black away from Central Park. Although we may never know what the Queen’s apartment at this building looks like, judging by the apartment currently on the market, it was nothing short of lavish. The 3-floor penthouse up for sale by the Corcoran Group has 26-foot ceilings, a wood-burning fireplace, and Caesarstone countertops.

Midtown East

Dag Hammarskjöld Tower

Named after the infamous Nobel Peace Prize recipient who served as the second Secretary General, the Dag Hammarskjöld Tower stands 45 stories tall at the southwest corner of 2nd Avenue on 240 East 47th Street. The white-glove condominium is often sought after due to its proximity to the U.N.

The structure displays a two-toned, chamfered façade accented by solid balconies and staggered black glass along with a brick rooftop. Architecturally speaking, it’s one of the most intriguing buildings in New York City, adding a distinguished aesthetic to the consular neighborhood in which it resides. The Queen owned just one unit here. 

The International Plaza Condominium

Similar to the Dag Hammarskjöld Tower, the International Plaza Condominium was built in the early 80’s and is a white-glove building in its own right. Located just a block away from the UN, Grand Central Station and Tudor City Park, it is strategically placed for its residents to enjoy a variety of neighborhood amenities. Standing 29 stories tall, the building sports an outdoor garden and greenhouse-style lobby. The queen owned 3 condos here, in total.

50 United Nations Plaza

One unit at 50 United Nations Plaza was owned by the Crown. Having been designed by renowned architects Foster + Partners and developed by legendary Zeckendorf Development and Global Holdings, its an enviable midtown location. From its shimmering exterior class to its burnished gold and stainless steel appliances, the 43-story tower possesses a commanding energy. 

309 East 49th Street

Located on a quiet, tree-lined block off of Second Avenue, this luxury boutique condominium sits in close proximity to a variety of upscale retail options such as Lexington, Madison, and Fifth Avenues. Many of the building’s residences enjoy wrap terraces for panoramic, outdoor entertaining and dining. The Queen owned 2 units here. 

The Horizon

Offering outstanding amenities, the Horizon is yet another white-glove condominium in which the Queen owned a residence. It’s located at 415 East 37th Street right between First Avenue and East River Drive. On its 44th floor resident’s will find a rooftop pool and a resident’s lounge complete with a bar and kitchen setup. The building also offers a fully equipped gym and health club with a dedicated spinning room, and even a children’s playroom. 

The Queen also owned two units at 309-321 E 49th St. located in Midtown East, totaling 24 properties on record owned by some version of “Her Majesty” at the time of her death. 

Understanding the Breadth of the Royal Family’s Real Estate Holdings

While the Queen’s NY real estate portfolio is in the millions, the Crown’s combined real estate portfolio is estimated to be in the dozens of billions if you can believe it! Putting a definitive value on the total value of all homes owned by the Crown is difficult if not, impossible. 

Most royal properties have never been sold. They’ve instead been passed down through generations of the royal family. The Crown is known for passionately guarding its privacy. They’re reluctant to reveal basic facts such as the amount of rooms in their private homes—much less their worth. 

However, experts suggest that the Royal Family’s overall property holdings total much more than what the average person could ever dream to afford. The royal family’s real estate portfolio includes country estates, townhouses, city apartments and, of course, castles.

The post Queen Elizabeth’s Opulent New York Real Estate Portfolio appeared first on CitySignal.

RealtyHop provided CitySignal with Manhattan properties where celebrities engaged in real estate activity over the past decade. This article features two lists, the first including celebrities who still own their property, and the latter composing of properties celebrities used to own. Continue reading to learn about the celebrities who live in Manhattan. 

This list was last updated in September of 2022. 

Here’s an interactive map that shows where celebrities have purchased and sold properties in Brooklyn!

Celebrities Who Currently Own Property in NYC

1) Barbara Corcoran – 1158 5th Avenue

Neighborhood: Upper East Side

Price: $10 million

Size: 11-room duplex

Closed: April 2015

“Shark Tank” superstar and real estate mogul Barbara Corcoran is no stranger to property hunting in New York City, and her expertise served her exceptionally well when it came to securing this unbelievable penthouse overlooking Central Park. The highlight of the apartment is its light-filled conservatory, though the massive cobbled garden terrace and attached solarium are also delightful to behold. The interior architecture feels trans-European with distinct French and old English accents and lends itself well to the antique decor that Corcoran has collected to fill her sumptuous lodgings.

2) Gigi Hadid – 10 Bond Street

Neighborhood: Noho

Price: $3.9 million

Size: 2 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms

Closed: July 2016

Most New Yorkers in their early twenties aren’t making multi-million real estate deals, but supermodel Gigi Hadid was only twenty-one when she bought her chic two-bedroom Noho apartment. The building’s private garage offers a secluded access point to the building for Hadid, who endured stalking from an overzealous fan at her former address in the city, and its interior (designed by Annabelle Selldorf) features ten-foot ceilings with eight-foot mahogany-lined windows, a sleek silver-accented kitchen complete with handcrafted backsplash tiles and Italian millwork. The master bathroom is walled entirely with marble and has heated floors for cold winter mornings.

3) Jesse Tyler Ferguson – 211 West 14th Street

Neighborhood: Chelsea

Price: $3 million

Size: 2 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms

Closed: July 2018

Famous for his star-making turn on Modern Family and his recent Tony-winning appearance in Broadway’s Take Me Out, actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson recently took on another major role: playing “Dad” to his two-year-old son Becket. Fatherhood inspired Ferguson and his husband to purchase a two-bedroom in Chelsea for their family to grow into, and the pair’s new home is perfectly charming: taking advantage of the blank slate offered by the brand-new unit, they customized the apartment to feature quirky storage niches, an open concept living room with plenty of natural light, a sleek, angular kitchen with integrated appliances, and deep blue accents in every room to create a cohesive color palette. 

4) Taylor Swift – 153 Franklin Street

Neighborhood: Tribeca

Price: $18 million

Size: Three-story townhouse

Closed: October 2017

Superstar singer-songwriter Taylor Swift stirred up a few titters when she bought her current Tribeca townhouse several years ago due to the residence’s colorful history: 153 Franklin Street was where French politician Dominique Strauss-Kahn remained under house arrest for a number of months in 2011. In spite of the hefty baggage the home carries, there’s no denying that it makes a luxurious abode: designed by architect Leopoldo Rosati, the home features three stories’ worth of striking ornamental skylights, zig-zagging glass-walled staircases, and wood-paneled walls, as well as a built-in home movie theatre, a rooftop terrace, and guest bedroom suites with adjoining bathrooms. Swift owns the small townhome at 153 and units next-door at 155 Franklin in the Sugar Loaf Building. 

*Photo attribution: RealtyHop

5) Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner (“Sting”) – 220 Central Park South

Neighborhood: Hell’s Kitchen (Billionaire’s Row)

Price: $65.7 million

Size: 3 bedrooms. 5.5 bathrooms

Closed: July 2019

The residents of Billionaire’s Row form an elite club, and it was with some fanfare that Sting, former frontman of The Police, joined their ranks upon the purchase of his 65-million-dollar penthouse atop the 75-story supertall skyscraper at 220 Central Park South. While the interior specs of the apartment are something of a mystery, as certain details of the listing were never made public, the unit includes a massive outdoor terrace and northern and southern exposures. The building itself was designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern and features exteriors made from Alabama limestone, scattered Juliet balconies, a private motor court, several athletic facilities, and a spa. There is even a private restaurant operated by celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten that is reserved exclusively for residents.

*Photo attribution: Jim.Henderson

6) Shonda Rhimes – 765 Park Avenue

Neighborhood: Lenox Hill 

Price: $11.75 million

Size: 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms

Closed: December 2018

There’s no place like Shondaland, but even acclaimed showrunner and producer Shonda Rhimes needs someplace a little more grounded in reality to lay her head each night. She found exactly what she needed in this breathtaking penthouse designed by luxury apartment architect Rosario Candela in 1927. Rhimes’ unit comes complete with a private elevator, a full wraparound terrace, a wood burning fireplace, a personal library, and even two dishwashers to help clean up after guests attend dinners in the splendid central dining area. 

Properties Celebrities Used To Own In Manhattan

1) Jennifer Lawrence – 400 East 67th Street (The Laurel)

Neighborhood: Lenox Hill

Price: $9.9 million

Size: 3 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms

Closed: March 2020

The Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence faced a tough market when she sold her stunning Upper East Side apartment in March 2020, receiving far less than the $15.6 million she originally paid for the sprawling penthouse four years earlier. Standing high above the city in the top floors of The Laurel, an exclusive 30-story condominium, the 4,073-square-foot unit includes a private elevator vestibule, a limestone gas fireplace, a massive outdoor terrace, a built-in ping-pong table, and a living room with full-length windows that provide a sweeping view of the city skyline. 

2) Sarah Jessica Parker – 57 Charles Street

Neighborhood: West Village

Price: $15 million

Size: 4,000 square feet; bedrooms and bathrooms unknown

Closed: January 2021

Carrie Bradshaw, eat your heart out! The adorable West Village brownstone where Sarah Jessica Parker lived with husband Matthew Broderick for more than twenty years is only blocks away from the townhouse inhabited by her character from Sex in the City, and the couple earned a hefty return on the renovations they invested in during their time there: they paid only $3 million for the place when they first bought it in 2000 and sold it for nearly five times that amount in early 2021. The property includes a classic brownstone stoop and a functioning wood-burning fireplace with an impressive mantle, and the celebrity duo have taken great pains to preserve and maintain elements of the century-old building’s historic interior.  

3) Meryl Streep – 92 Laight Street (River Lofts)

Neighborhood: Tribeca

Price: $15.8 million

Size: 4 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms

Closed: January 2020

Ms. Streep is recognized far and wide as an actress of great class, and her splendid penthouse overlooking the Hudson, which she recently sold after fourteen years as a resident, proves that she has equally exquisite taste when it comes to real estate. Occupying a full floor of Tribeca’s River Lofts condominiums, the 3,944-square-foot apartment offers nearly 360-degree views of the city between its full-length windows and massive wraparound terrace, and the open floor plan allows natural light to permeate through the entire living space. The building itself includes a private underground garage with secure elevator access that provided much-needed security to the celebrity actress.

4) Susan Sarandon – 147 West 15th Street

Neighborhood: Chelsea

Price: $7.9 million

Size: 6 bedrooms, 5.5 bathrooms

Closed: July 2020

Susan Sarandon, known for cult classics like The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Thelma & Louise, bested the turbulent conditions of the early COVID real estate market to receive her exact asking price when selling her charming Chelsea duplex. Sarandon, who bought the apartment in 1991, raised all three of her children in an open-concept layout that the family lovingly referred to as “the field.” Both floors of the duplex include sizeable terraces, and Sarandon also enjoyed making use of the apartment’s central fireplace and two separate entrances and frequently made use of its numerous guest bedrooms to host friends, activists, and fellow creatives.

5) Bette Midler – 1125 5th Avenue

Neighborhood: Carnegie Hill

Price: $45 million

Size: 6 bedrooms, 6.5 bathrooms

Closed: July 2021

For the privilege of settling down in the former digs of Broadway legend and beloved Hocus Pocus star Bette Midler, the new owners of her palatial penthouse in Carnegie Hill were happy to shell out a cool $45 million. The three-story penthouse features several green spaces, including a wraparound terrace, rooftop garden, and greenhouse, while the interior offers a library, a spacious kitchen, and a full gallery with an adjoining powder room; the master suite alone comes equipped with a beauty parlor, a fireplace, a steam room, a home gym, and a jacuzzi made from Japanese Hinoki cypress. Midler made numerous modifications during her twenty-five years as a resident, including making the ceilings higher and combining two separate units into a single apartment, and the new residents will surely benefit from her keen eye and excellent taste.

6) Trevor Noah – 425 West 50th Street (Stella Tower)

Neighborhood: Hell’s Kitchen

Price: $10 million

Size: 3 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, 2 half-bathrooms

Closed: March 2017

The Daily Show host Trevor Noah spent only six months living in Hell’s Kitchen’s stylish prewar Stella Tower before deciding that he needed to upsize, promptly trading in his former two-bedroom rental apartment for a duplex penthouse fit for a king. As a bonus, Noah films The Daily Show just a few blocks away from his new home—but this extraordinary apartment would be worth commuting any distance for. The lower floor includes a conjoined eat-in kitchen and dining room, two guest bedrooms with attached bathrooms, and a living room with fourteen-foot ceilings, while the upper level of the penthouse features the master bedroom and a second living room that opens out onto a 934-square-foot wraparound terrace with mesmerizing views of nearby Times Square. 

The post Which Celebrities Bought, Sold, or Still Live in Properties in Manhattan? appeared first on CitySignal.

Background History of Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett is one of the most famous wealth managers and investors in the world, best known for his company, Berkshire Hathaway. He is still actively serving as Chairman and CEO at 91, and Munger remains his partner at 98. It’s easy to see why; these two men have strong values and strategies that have helped them earn enormous wealth. They both credit their success to adhering to principles that are rarely spoken of in business, and had wonderful examples in their fathers.

Buffett is a financial wizard who invested for the first time at just 11 years old, and filed taxes for the first time at 13. His business started out as Buffett Partnership Ltd. in 1956, but he acquired a textile manufacturing company called Berkshire Hathaway and adopted the name to create a diversified holding company; one he has grown into the largest financial services company by revenue in the world. The companies owned by Berkshire Hathaway today are far too numerous to list in this article, but include big names like Duracell, Geico, Dairy Queen, Helzberg Diamonds, and Fruit of the Loom. The complete, ever-changing list of Berkshire Hathaway holdings is best visualized using the HedgeFollow tracking tool.

Warren Buffett’s Business Advice

So what’s his secret? He said in the interview it was due to having a deeply virtuous father, who instilled these qualities in him as a young man. Charlie Munger, his business partner of more than 60 years now, said the exact same thing about his own father. They took these qualities and applied them to their business leadership. Buffett says he looks for 3 qualities in hiring people: integrity, intelligence and energy—and advises college students one main piece of advice: Do what you love. Take the job you would want if you were independently wealthy, were his exact words. He also mentions another important quality is emotional stability. But when asked how they could tell if someone was a “fit,” they do it just like anyone else—with a gut instinct.

Buffet has a good sense of humor, as well, and says they have a decentralized philosophy at their headquarters in Omaha, where both men are from. He insists they’ve built an entirely unorthodox business model around the idea of minimal management and maximum trust in individual staff. Buffett is a believer in a long-term “value investing” style. But the true value here is the man himself. He is a man of substance and virtue, and knows the value of those virtues in others. He talks about having the luxury of being able to discern those outstanding individuals, choosing them as his only associates. Buffett is asked what he values most, and answers in part, “unconditional love.” What does he loathe? “Shady” people, and complacency—laziness or boredom. Especially in business. Buffett studies failures, and remembers mistakes and learns everything he can from them.

Warren Buffett’s Real Estate Portfolio

Buffett’s businesses include a real estate service, Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, that provides home valuations and other market data. Included in this division is a home-finding service for luxury homes, vacation homes and investment properties. Buffett is known for his interest in dedicating his time and money into quality investments with proven value over time, and his investment style has proven to have worked for him in a big way. Despite being one of the top 10 richest people in the world, he doesn’t even use a computer at work—he says he has no use for one. Just a telephone works fine for his purposes, he says.

This is Warren Buffett’s house, located in Omaha, Nebraska. For a multi-billionaire, he lives extremely modestly. In keeping with his no-frills approach when it comes to computers, he’s a man of consistency—he lives in the same way he has for decades and doesn’t try to fix anything that’s not broken. This is the house he bought in 1958, for $31,500. Today, it’s valued at $652K+. The house is 6,570 ft² and has 5 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. There is a security gate and cameras around the property. Unlike many billionaires, Buffett does not have an extensive real estate portfolio, and when asked about his modest lifestyle, he simply smiles and says, “I’m happy. Why would I want to change anything?”

The post Does Warren Buffett Have a Real Estate Portfolio? appeared first on CitySignal.

The Upper West Side

Jerry Seinfeld

Jerry Seinfeld lives at the ultra-luxe Beresford building, not too far from the apartment used for the set of his show, Seinfeld. The Beresford is located at 211 Central Park West on the Upper West Side, and has been home to many celebrities over the years. The building was converted to a co-op in 1962.

According to RealtyHop, it has massive ballroom-size rooms with 10’ ceilings, wood-burning fireplaces, terraces, and much more, including white-glove service for tenants and 24-hour doorman. Jerry Seinfeld has always loved New York and is performing in 2022 at the Beacon Theatre.

Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is one of the most famous celebrities in NYC, and he resides at 15 Central Park West on the Upper West Side. Nicknamed the “Tower of Power” for its many notable residents, 15 Central Park West consists of the “house” which is 19 stories and contains 68 apartments, and the “tower” which is 35 stories and contains 134 apartments. Robert De Niro, Mark Wahlberg, Sting, and Kelsey Grammer have lived here, among others. Amenities here include a private dining room, library, screening room, wine cellars, health club and pool. Mr. Washington purchased his 3,000 ft² apartment in 2006 for $13 million. Sting purchased his in 2008 for $26.5 million, then sold it in 2017 for $50 million dollars. Another apartment at this address sold for a record $88 million in 2011.

Steven Spielberg

Another epic name, Steven Spielberg, has an apartment at the infamous San Remo building, located at 145 – 146 Central Park West. The San Remo is a prestigious co-op designed by renowned architect Emery Roth, who also did the El Dorado. Spielberg’s spread is on the 16th floor and measures 6,000 ft², featuring direct views of Central Park. Some other notable residents at the San Remo have included Barry Manilow, Dustin Hoffman, Demi Moore, Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, and Bruce Willis.

Howard Stern

The icon Howard Stern lives in the Millennium Tower near Lincoln Center on the UWS in Manhattan. Stern owns a 2-floor penthouse made up of 5 condos he purchased over the course of a decade for a total of $21 million dollars. This is his primary residence, and totals 8,000 square feet, encompassing the entire 53rd and 54th floor of the building. Stern first purchased all 3 condos on the 54th floor in 1998 for $6 million, and then in 2008, he purchased the 2 condos on the 53rd floor for $15 million.

The star also owns a home in the Hamptons, where he spent a lot of time during the coronavirus. The 8 bedroom, 12 bathroom Southampton waterfront mansion sits on well over 4 acres, and is over 15,000 square feet. The bedroom alone is 1,500 square feet, and the home features a bowling alley, a wine cellar and tasting room, a pool, a cabana and a spa. The luxurious residence was bought in 2005 for $20 million.

Midtown Manhattan

Sting

Music icon Sting, who sold his apartment at 15 Central Park West in 2017, finally closed on his purchase of an apartment at 220 Central Park South in 2019—after 3 years of negotiations. The musician and his wife shelled out $65.7 million dollars for this legendary address. This building boasts the most expensive residential real estate deal in the world, which happened last year, when hedge fund mogul Ken Griffin purchased an apartment for $238 million dollars. Ever since then, the address has been extra hot. The building, unsurprisingly, sits on Billionaire’s Row. The property also boasts the second most expensive real estate purchase, a penthouse on the 73rd floor that was bought for $188 million in January 2022.

Katie Holmes

Although Katie Holmes and her daughter Suri Cruise were living in Chelsea, it’s rumored that the pair moved to Midtown. The actress is notoriously private and is known for avoiding the paparazzi. Holmes moved her daughter to NYC after her divorce from Cruise, preferring to raise Suri in the Big Apple where things are more their vibe. It’s pretty amazing that we know so little about where these two elusive ladies live, especially given the publicity buzz around Tom Cruises’ career resurgence with the success of Top Gun: Maverick.

Tribeca

Mariah Carey

One of the most notable stars in TriBeCa is Mariah Carey, who lives in a penthouse in the Franklin Tower at 90 Franklin Street. The 17-story Art Deco building started out as a bank in 1929, and now is an exclusive condominium tower with 25 luxury lofts. Amenities include a 24-hour concierge, roof deck, terrace, fitness room and all the luxury and privacy you would expect from an upper class establishment. Carey purchased the penthouse in 1999 for over $9 million, and the home has 5,600 ft² with 4 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms. It also features an aquarium, a screening room, marble countertops, and gold faucets.

Taylor Swift

Speaking of Franklin Street, Taylor Swift has been swiftly buying up property in Tribeca over the last several years, most of it at 155 Franklin Street in the Sugar Loaf Building. The star owns a duplex penthouse and half of the second floor. The two top floor units were combined in one purchase for $19.95 million in 2014, and together make the sprawling 8,000 ft² residence nice and spacious.

In 2018, Swift purchased a second-floor apartment measuring 3,540 ft² for $9.75 million. And if all of that isn’t enough, Swift also owns a townhouse next door she paid $18 million for that came with its own gym and spa. This pop star seems to have an affinity for Tribeca, though her $80 million real estate portfolio spans several states.

Midtown East

Uma Thurman

Another huge star, Uma Thurman, lives at the River House at 435 East 52nd Street. The River House is a historically exclusive co-op with a board that famously turned down celebrities like Gloria Vanderbilt, Richard Nixon, Diane Keaton, and Joan Crawford. Apparently, that was the old board, however, and the new board is purported to be more welcoming. The River House also includes membership to a prestigious club that includes a pool, tennis and squash courts, golf simulator, dining room, and guest bedrooms.

NoHo

Gigi Hadid

In NoHo, supermodel Gigi Hadid lives at 10 Bond Street, where she owns 2 units, one of which is the only townhouse at the address. Gigi Hadid paid $4 million and $5.82 million for the two units, in 2015 and 2018, respectively. The first unit is two bedrooms while the second is a three-bedroom duplex with a 770-square-foot outdoor terrace. The building, designed by Selldorf Architects, contains 11 residences with interiors designed by Annabelle Selldorf. It features 10-foot ceilings, garden terraces, Douglas Fir hardwood floors, mahogany window sills, Italian millwork, marble slab counters, and top-of-the-line appliances.

SoHo

Bella Hadid

It was reported Gigi’s sister, Bella Hadid, purchased a SoHo penthouse at 63 Greene Street in late 2019. The unit is 2,180 square feet, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms, and she paid $6.1 million for the renovated unit. This SoHo building is 145 years old and located in the Cast Iron Historic District. The building wasn’t converted to condos until 2016, and has smart features, custom lighting, motorized blackout shades in the bedrooms, built-in closets, and a 100-bottle custom backlit wine room.

Other Notorious Places for Celebrity Sightings in NYC

There are a few other hotspots where spotting someone famous is nearly guaranteed if you hang out long enough. NYC, being the heart of the television entertainment industry, has many studios where legendary shows are recorded day and night. Actors and famous personalities have to take lunch breaks during work, too—and you might also be lucky enough to spot them at one of these notable restaurants.

Rockefeller Center

At 30 Rockefeller Plaza, SNL and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon are recorded, and celebrities guest-starring on the show are often seen entering or exiting the building. Additionally, The Today Show is taped on the corner of 49th and Rockefeller Center overlooking Rockefeller plaza, and every weekday, fans accumulate by the studio hoping to get a front row seat and be on TV.

Rao’s Restaurant

If you want the most exclusive restaurant in NYC, where stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Jay-Z, and Hilary Clinton have been spotted, in East Harlem, you’ll find Rao’s. Located at 455 East 114th Street, don’t think you’ll ever be able to get a table—sorry, but the iconic restaurant has just 10 tables, and they’ve been reserved for years by the elite. To get a table here, it’s all about who you know. Chef and owner Frank Pelligrini, Jr. leads the family business after over 125 years of restaurant service for the ultra-wealthy. If you watch the corner restaurant long enough, you should be rewarded.

The Polo Bar

Ralph Lauren’s The Polo Bar in Midtown, located at 1 East 55th Street, is a hotspot for big-name celebrities like Jerry Seinfeld, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Barbra Streisand. The food is great here, along with the ambiance. The menu as well as the decor in this space is inspired by Ralph Lauren, and the impeccable service does not disappoint. Reservations must be made far in advance, so start planning now.

 

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 The Carlyle

This place has all the elements of being one of the best celebrity hotspots in the city that never sleeps. Not only is The Carlyle considered one of the nicest 4-star hotels for its accommodations, but it also contains Bemelmans Bar, where you could potentially spot celebrities like Paul McCartney and Lady Gaga sipping cocktails any night. Additionally, Café Carlyle’s Cabaret features star musicians playing jazz on Mondays—tickets to these performances go fast.

Use this guide to help you on your celebrity spotting adventure in NYC. Good luck, and remember above all to be courteous and kind if you do bump into a celebrity—they’re real people, too.

The post Top Celebrity Hotspots and Homes in New York City appeared first on CitySignal.

But what has happened to the properties of these two individuals now that Epstein is dead and Maxwell’s case is over?

Jeffrey Epstein’s Properties

The Islands

Little Saint James & Great Saint James

The largest, most obvious of the properties that make up the real estate portfolios of these two now infamous people are not one but two Caribbean Islands: Little Saint James and Great Saint James. Jeffrey Epstein purchased the first one now know as Little Saint James, back in 1998. It was purchased for about $8 million, and Epstein began to develop it immediately, making major improvements to the compound starting in about 2007.

Little Saint James totals 75 acres and has several buildings that are connected by pathways traversed by golf carts, according to the Independent. The main residence, which we assume Epstein spared no expense in providing himself every luxury, sits abandoned on the island. There are also 4 guest villas, a helipad, a private dock, 3 private beaches, 2 pools, a gym, and a tiki hut.

Great Saint James is the larger of the two islands, at 165 acres, and is yet largely undeveloped, mostly due to conflict with the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources surrounding construction plans. Amidst concerns about “prying eyes” discovering his dastardly deeds, Epstein is believed to have purchased the larger island as cover for the activities going on at his smaller island. In 2016 the island was purchased for $22.5 million under the name of Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem due to islanders pressuring the current owners not to sell to a man with his reputation.

There are a few minor structures and a marine preserve called Christmas Cove on the island. However, the New York Magazine reported that Epstein shut Christmas Cove down when he bought it. At first, the two islands were on the market as a pair for $125 million, with proceeds going to the victim’s relief fund to settle lawsuits of victims that continue to come forward in the case. However, after a 12% reduction, they are now available for $55 million each or for a combined purchase of $110 million.

Epstein’s Palm Beach Property

Florida was where Epstein was first charged for his now well-known nefarious activities and where he had a mansion at 358 El Brillo Way in Palm Beach. Epstein had bought the place in 1990 for $2.5 million. On the property was the main house, totaling 14,000 ft², and had 6 bedrooms, a 3-bedroom staff house and a pool house. The address is about a mile and a half from Trump’s famous private club, Mar-a-Lago, and also boasted 170 feet of private waterfront.

Epstein’s Property from the street in 2011 

In July 2020, after Epstein’s death, the mansion was placed on the market for $22 million. Developer Todd Michael Glaser later purchased the home in October 2021 for $18.5 million – and had the place razed. Yep, you heard right – the plush mansion was completely demolished to make way for another new Palm Beach mansion – and a new beginning.

The newly demolished land was then sold to David Skok for a little over $25 million. Glaser had shared with the Wall Street Journal that due to a combination of rejection from the Palm Beach architectural review board, rising construction costs and shrinking availability of housing in Palm Beach, he planned to off-load the property.

View of the Palm Beach Property in 2021, post demolition 

According to the Netflix documentary Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, the Florida case against Epstein really didn’t start until 2005, after a 14-year-old girl got into a fight at school and had $300 cash on her, but gave her mother no explanation for where it came from. Not long afterward, the mother overheard her daughter talking to a friend about having a sexual encounter with some rich old guy in Palm Beach for money. Eventually, the mother got the whole story out of her daughter and the friend, and it was the same basic story the countless other girls all told police, before and since, about Epstein’s now-familiar M.O. The mother promptly reported it to the police – who told her someone would call her back. Luckily, the officer who did was a woman who took it seriously and asked the mother if she would bring her daughter down to the station to give them a statement. From there, the police started to investigate Epstein actively.

The Manhattan Mansion ~ The Herbert N. Straus House

In Manhattan, Epstein resided in what is known as the largest mansion in the city. The Herbert N. Straus house, at 9 East 71st Street on the Upper East Side, is 9 floors and 51,000 ft² of mega-mansion glory. It was constructed in 1932, and in the late 1980s, it was believed to be 21,000 ft². In 1996, Jeffrey Epstein moved in, claiming ownership. In 2003, the house had somehow been extended to 51,000 ft², just in time for a Vanity Fair spread on “The Talented Mr. Epstein” in his opulent Manhattan mansion. The article describes a lead-lined bathroom with CCTV, giving credence to later testimony of hidden cameras and blackmail material being recorded. It also described eccentric and expensive decor inside a lavish mansion. The house even has heated sidewalks out front!

According to the documentary Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, the reporter for Vanity Fair who wrote the story said she was contacted by two different victims of Epstein who had already tried to tell their stories but had not been heard by the police. She said she tried to include this, including Epstein’s side of the story and had asked him about it during their interview. Of course, he denied it and said they were infatuated with him and upset because it was unrequited, or something like that. The reporter says she included all of that in the story, but when they submitted it to Epstein for his final review before publishing, he made a phone call to the owner/editor, and they ended up removing that part completely at the last minute.

Originally, when Epstein moved in, the address was tied to an LLC that he and his billionaire client, Leslie Wexner, founder of L Brands attached to Victoria’s Secret, Bath and Body Works, and more, controlled together. But in 2011, it was transferred to Maple Inc. that Epstein controlled alone. Epstein was a financial wizard who provided financial advice and services for the extremely wealthy – such as Wexner, a notably consistent client whose life was intertwined with Epstein’s.

Of course, now that Epstein is dead, anyone who was publicly outed as being tied to him has distanced themselves as far as possible. Wexner is no exception, claiming to be a victim of Epstein’s as well.

The duo’s business arrangement terminated around 2007, but reportedly it was under terrible circumstances. Vanity Fair reported that Wexner stated Epstein stole at least $47 million from him, which for some reason, was never reported. It seems to be a source of embarrassment, which is really the only thing that makes sense here – unless of course, Epstein had something on Wexner. Epstein is said to have had incredible charisma and manipulation skills – but perhaps, all he ever really needed (besides the money, of course) were his blackmail skills.

The Manhattan home was sold for $51 million in March of 2021 to former Goldman Sachs executive Michael Daffey under Back to NYC 71 LLC. A source told the NYPost that Daffey is “planning a complete makeover, physically and spiritually.” As with the other real estate transactions, proceeds went or will go to the Epstein Victims’ Compensation Program.

New Mexico Property

Jeffrey Epstein also owned a $3 million mansion he had built in New Mexico, one that measures approximately 30,000 square feet – making it one of the largest homes in the entire state. Epstein also purchased a ranch that totals about 7,600 acres of private, gated property surrounding the hilltop mansion. The entire ranch, dubbed the Zorro Ranch, is on the market for $27.5 million, and includes several residences, a firehouse, horse stables, a huge greenhouse, pools, etc. – and of course, the private airstrip and hangar.

According to Realtor.com, the compound includes the main residence which is 3 stories and 4 bedrooms, a caretaker’s residence, one separately and privately located residence, 4 residences at Ranch Central near the ranch’s entrance, the Lodge, and the Log Cabin, all in their separate areas. The sprawling property has had no takers yet but supposedly has had interest from several unnamed sources.

Interestingly, a deed was filed in October of 2020 transferring the Zorro ranch to an alleged nonprofit church calling itself “Love and Bliss,” whose address traced back to a small residential home in Redington Beach, Florida. This was the same entity that filed a fraudulent warranty on Epstein’s Florida property that held up the sale process in Florida and cost the estate time and money – in turn costing the victims. In both cases, the deeds were proven to be false, but details are still unknown about the entities connected to “Love and Bliss.”

Epstein’s France Property

Amazingly, we didn’t hear much about what went on in France, where his last property is located. It turns out the French had been hearing about Epstein’s proclivities for years and when he was jailed for the second time in America, it prompted their own investigation, especially after girls reported being abused in France. In fact, they had a close associate of Epstein’s in custody, as well. 75-year-old Jean-Luc Brunel, a man who ran the French top model agency Karin Models for decades, was arrested at Charles de Gaulle airport before boarding a plane, in December 2020. He was detained on charges of rape of a minor and sexual harassment in two different cases, and was suspected of trafficking minors for sexual exploitation in the Epstein case. He had long been rumored of supplying Jeffrey Epstein with underage girls, but had always vehemently denied any wrongdoing. But Brunel, like Epstein, was found hanged in his cell in February of this year, 2022 – a damning act in itself.

Epstein’s Paris home is said to be located on Ave Foch. 

In August of 2019, the French opened an inquiry after the U.S. found links to sex trafficking claims due to their investigation of Epstein. The French searched the second-floor flat Epstein owned in Paris on Avenue Foch near the Arc de Triomphe, but not a lot is known about what they did or did not find.

The flat was on the market for £ 11.9 million, equal to just over the same in U.S. dollars – so just over $13.5 million. It is 8,000 ft², has 8 bedrooms, and was being marketed by Sotheby’s for the executors of Epstein’s estate, though no mention of the financier was in the listing.

Epstein bought the Paris apartment in 2002 for around $6 million, and according to the butler, Prince Andrew came and stayed there multiple times, even when Epstein was not there.

Ghislaine Maxwell and Her Properties

Robert Maxwell’s Debt

Ghislaine Maxwell is the daughter of a British media mogul and former member of Parliament, the late Robert Maxwell. To understand her financial position, a little background information is necessary. She was educated at Oxford University and founded a women’s social club in London. Months before her father’s suspicious drowning death from the deck of his yacht, incidentally called the Lady Ghislaine, in March 1991, he purchased the New York Daily News. After his death, it was found that he was embezzling money from employee pension funds and was, in fact, found to be in debt for a whopping $4 billion with a net worth of $-1 billion, which of course, put his 9 children (including Ghislaine) in a terrible, disgraced position. He was also strongly suspected of being a double or even triple agent dating back to WWII. Maxwell was born in Czechoslovakia but escaped during the Nazi occupation. Robert Maxwell did manage to put $100,000 a year into a trust fund for each of his children, which was sheltered from the rest of his hidden financial ruin. This is what Ghislaine lived on when she originally moved to New York after her father’s death. When she began dating billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, he provided the financial stability she had grown accustomed to. Little did she know what she was really in for…

Manhattan Residence

Until 2016, Ghislaine Maxwell lived in a Manhattan mansion about 6 blocks from Jeffrey Epstein’s. It is believed to have been purchased by Epstein for Maxwell through an LLC that’s been tied to him. The home is at 116 East 65th Street in Lenox Hill and has already traded hands twice. Maxwell sold it in 2016 for $15 million to real estate investor Frederick Rudd and his wife Kim Greenberg, and it was recently announced they just sold the property again for $16 million to an undisclosed buyer. According to RealtyHop, this property is 6,950 ft², with 5 bedrooms and 4 full bathrooms. Other features are herringbone oak floors, a fireplace with an antique Carrara marble mantelpiece, a 750 ft² private garden featuring a stunning, fully mature Magnolia tree, Juliet balconies, and much more.

London – Belgravia Property

The famous photo of Prince Andrew with his arm around 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s main accusers, was taken at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell. Located in a wealthy neighborhood called Belgravia, on Kinnerton Street, in the picture [shown below], it doesn’t look like much. Regardless, it’s reported that Maxwell loved this “home away from home” but was forced to sell it to pay for her legal defense, according to what her spokesperson, Brian Basham, told The Telegraph.

The home is situated only a couple of blocks from Hyde Park, and the sale was said to be nearing completion back in March of 2021 for an undisclosed sum and to an anonymous buyer. The value was estimated to be around $2.7 million in U.S. dollars, and comparable homes in the area over the past two years have sold for between $3.6 million and $11.2 million. In August 2021, the home was reported as sold for £1.75 million, equivalent to about $2.1 million – even less than the speculated value estimated. This most likely indicates there’s been a definite negative impact on asset value, which is to be expected with crimes against children, in particular. Indeed, a frightening crime of this magnitude and this depth of depravity, committed by those in the highest echelon of society – is shocking, quite frankly – on so many levels! However, this doesn’t end here. There are a couple of other houses associated with Maxwell.

Maxwell’s Massachusetts Home

At 301 Summer Street is a house where Ghislaine was living before her arrest and was reported to be on the market in February of this year, priced at $7.295 million. The home is owned by the man she lived with as her husband, Scott Borgerson. Though it is speculated they were never legally married and the WSJ reported that Borgerson declined to comment on the status of a marriage. The home is in Borgerson’s LLC’s name; Tidewood. Known as the Phippen-Smith house, it measures 6,100 ft² and has 5 bedrooms. It overlooks the water and is part of an enclave called Sharksmouth which includes several other area homes. Maxwell left the shared home when things started to get ugly, publicity-wise. The couple is said to be estranged.

Currently, the home has been on the market for a year listed at $6.9 million.

Maxwell’s New Hampshire Escape

The last property associated with Ghislaine Maxwell is the one she was actually in when she was arrested in New Hampshire.

Perhaps the home with the most intrigue is her New Hampshire escape. According to NBC, the home was purchased by an LLC called Granite Reality – an interesting name choice, for sure – that was set up in November, one month before the December 2019 purchase. The price was $1,070,750 – and paid for in cash by an anonymous “mystery woman” whom a source told NBC news that neither the previous owner nor the agent ever knew. The home was obviously at least a temporary escape plan, one we assume she hoped could keep her concealed until she could figure out if she was going to need a “plan B.”

This home is 4,300 square feet and sits on 156 acres in the rural town of Bradford, population of around 1,600 people. It made an ideal hideout, with the original listing description reading, “an amazing retreat for the nature lover who also wants total privacy” – none of the other residents in the small town had ever heard of her before she was arrested by the F.B.I. there. Maxwell was charged with six federal counts: sex trafficking of a minor, enticing a minor to travel to engage in criminal sexual activity, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and three counts of conspiracy. She was acquitted of the enticing a minor to travel to engage in criminal sexual activity charge but was convicted of all the remaining five charges.

Ghislaine Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, and at age 61 now, she will likely spend the rest of her life there. What an extraordinary fall from grace, indeed. One does tend to wonder what ever happened to that “little black book” she was purported to have and who or what might also be uncovered from a ripple effect of the investigations of Epstein and Maxwell.

The post The Real Estate Portfolio of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell appeared first on CitySignal.

The “Secret Garden in the Sky”

Amy Schumer and her husband, chef Chris Fischer, are moving to be closer to their son’s school in Brooklyn. Sadly, that means Ms. Schumer has to shed her Manhattan penthouse, so it’s been for $15 mil. Of course, Schumer’s apartment is the penthouse, but this one indeed stands out. If you’ve been keeping up with the latest Kardashian show, you may have seen bits of this apartment when Kim visits Schumer for guidance about her appearance on SNL.

Framed in lush green, the foliage you’ll see throughout the photos is done by landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, who’s created a lush, garden-like environment.

One thing I found intriguing right from the gate is the use of marble and rich wood throughout the apartment. It’s obvious she spared no expense in her decor, and Amy Schumer has good taste. Clements Design helped her with the interior design. She chose them after visiting star pal Jennifer Lawrence and seeing what they can do. The firm is also known for working on Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo’s Pacific Palisades home, along with other celebrities. Next to the foyer and tucked away is a secret spiral staircase that leads to a 730 ft² private rooftop garden.

Now we have to backtrack to the foyer area, where you’ll find a beautiful built-in powder room. As you exit the private, key-only elevator you’ll see the custom anthracite stone gas fireplace and living room.

The condo is 4,500 ft², surrounded by 3,000 ft² of wraparound terraces planted with lush greenery. The landscape architect was money well spent, as the touches that flourish throughout the avant-garde space really make all the difference. The home has five bedrooms and five full bathrooms.

Of course, the kitchen and dining room are to die for, done in bold color that matches the rest of the home perfectly. The countertops are quartz and the appliances are top-notch. SubZero refrigerator, freezer, and wine refrigerator, Thermador oven, and dishwasher. Large dining area, great for entertaining on holidays or anytime, the home emanates beauty, harmony, and class.

The home is picture-perfect, with 11-foot glass walls that meet angled skylights that wrap around the living spaces. Honestly, this could be anybody’s Upper West Side Manhattan dream apartment without changing a thing. And don’t forget the high-tech perks: Lutron lighting controls, a multi-zoned Ecobee thermostat, and Toto automated Washlets. Now let’s talk about another celebrity real estate sale this week.

Neil Patrick Harris and Partner Sell Harlem Brownstone for Record Price

Say whaaat?! Yep, that’s right – according to the New York Post, Neil Patrick Harris and partner David Burka have finally sold the brownstone listed first for $7.3 million last August. The home, at 2036 Fifth Avenue, suffered storm damage and had to be pulled while renovations were done. Originally built in 1908, the couple bought the five-bedroom, 8,000 ft² home in 2013 for $3.6 million and have put countless loving hours into its original restoration. It is absolutely gorgeous, and if I had to use one word to describe it? Manly. Like, almost overkill.

The house is regal looking and rich, dark wood and tones prevail throughout the home. It is five stories high and 20 feet wide, and now in contract for over $7.1 million, which beats the price record in the area. Harris and Burka have adopted twins, Gideon and Harper, and apparently have lots of great memories here but also have a house in the Hamptons that they spend much more time at these days. The reason for selling is stated as they don’t need two large homes. The home comes with a vintage restored bar from an old hotel, that has updated equipment so that everything works, including two taps.

I do absolutely love the look of the dark wood they’ve kept and restored throughout, it is very tasteful and reminds one somehow of old money. The couple enlisted help from New York architect Jeffery Povero and LA designer Trace Lehnhoff. They have kept all original historic details like moldings, restored dark wood and staircase, and millwork intact. There’s also outdoor space totaling 2,000 ft² with a mostly enclosed roof deck included with the sale. This space is furnished, irrigated and landscaped and includes a jacuzzi, outdoor grill and dining table for eight.

Back inside, the townhouse also has a top-floor office hidden behind a trick door, a formal dining room, library, music room, wine cellar, three fireplaces and a playroom. The couple bought the place as an old bed and breakfast and have turned it instead into the large single family home you see here. The home they spend most of their time at in the Hamptons is in East Hampton and was bought in 2017 for $5.5 million. It’s four bedrooms, sits on 13.5 acres and is adjacent to a 10-acre reserve.

Closing Remarks on the Luxury Market

According to The Real Deal, the luxury market is slow this year after a record year high in 2021. The luxury market in NYC is defined as properties selling for $4 million or above, and from 2013-2015 NYC averaged about 26 contracts a week. In more recent years there’s been a lot of fluctuation, such as 2020’s 12 contract a week average. In 2021, there was a record weekly average of 36 contracts per week. This year, the first week of January was the slowest one so far with 21 contracts, and last week, from May 16th-May 22nd, was the next slowest with 23. On May 9th, TRD reported the week prior as having a record 43 contracts signed for between $4 million and $10 million – but because no listing sold for more than $10 million, however, the luxury market itself is considered to be in a “price slump.” One thing is safe to say: the housing market is unpredictable at the moment.

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