The Central Park penthouse demolished the previous record for most expensive home in the country.
Most Expensive Home
Hedge fund billionaire Kenneth Griffin is now the proud new owner of the most expensive home in America. This week, he paid $238 million for a penthouse in New York City that overlooks Central Park.
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Two Condos in One
The unit is nearly 24,000 square feet and is a combination of two apartments at the top of the 220 Central Park South tower, which is still under construction.
Price Per Square Foot
That price tag puts the price per square foot on this penthouse at $10,000. For comparison, the average cost per square foot in the United States is $123. So, this size home would be more like $2.95 million if it was in, like, Iowa or something.
Record-Breaker
Previously, the most expensive home sold in New York City was a $100.5 million duplex that was bought in 2014. The previous record for the most expensive home in the country was set in 2014 when a $137 million East Hampton home was sold.
Not the Only Big Shot
Griffin isn’t the only big shot buying up condo space in the 1,000-foot tall tower. From the New York Times :
Tong Tong Zhao, a founder of a hotel management company based in Shanghai, bought a 27th-floor, 2,394-square-foot two-bedroom in the tower for $13.49 million. British musician Sting and his wife Trudie Styler, who recently sold a unit at 15 Central Park West, another Robert A.M. Stern tower, are buying a unit in the building.
Other Homes
Griffin has an extensive portfolio of incredible homes around the world. He has place in NYC, Miami, Chicago, and London. Again, from the New York Times:
He holds the record for buying the most expensive apartment in Miami, a $60 million sale in 2015 at the Faena House in Miami Beach. Last year he spent $58.75 million on a Chicago penthouse, a record for the city, The Chicago Tribune reported.
Citadel
Griffin began trading bonds in college at Harvard. After graduating, he started his own small investment firm called Citadel. Last year, the company was managing $28 billion at the start of this year. Forbes estimated that Griffin is worth more than $9 billion.
Chicago-Based
He’s considered a power player in Chicago, where his firm is based and where he spends most of his time. In 2015, he donated more than $1 million to support the election of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
Art Collector
He doesn’t just collect real estate. Griffin is also and avid art collector and has donated millions of dollars to museums across the globe. The Art Institute of Chicago even has a wing named after him.
World’s Most Expensive
The NYC penthouse is far, far from the most expensive in the world. That designation goes to Buckingham Palace, which is valued at $1.55 billion :
Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms, including 52 bedrooms for the royals and their guests, 188 bedrooms for staff, 78 bathrooms and 92 offices. That’s in addition to 19 state rooms – among them a state dining room, a music room and, an obvious necessity for any sitting monarch, a throne room. The ballroom is a more recent addition, built by Queen Victoria in time to celebrate the end of the Crimean War in 1856. The palace’s gardens cover some 40 acres.
Most Expensive Private Residence
The most expensive private residence in the world is Antilia in Mumbai, valued at $1 billion:
Antilia is a 400,000-square-foot 27-story mansion completed in 2010. In fact, 27 stories hardly does it justice. At 570 feet in height, it is the equivalent of a 50- to 60-story building, with an offbeat shape that defies easy description.
